GloPID-R Membership Grows to 23 with 5 New Members

GloPID-R membership is accelerating with five globally recognized research funding institutions joining the consortium.  New members the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Norwegian Research Council, the Indian Council of Medical Research, Canada’s International Development Research Centre, and the Italian Ministry of Health will help identify key research priorities and the most effective ways to collaborate when a new infectious threat emerges.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be represented by Penny Heaton, Director of Vaccine Development within the Global Health Program. This program promotes the advancement of science and technology, including development of vaccines, drugs and diagnostics that are affordable and reliable.

The Research Council of Norway will be represented by Jesper Simonsen. The Norway Research Council promotes R&D systems for quality research, knowledge to address societal and business challenges, and a framework for learning and innovation.

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will be represented by Rashmi Arora, Senior Deputy Director General and Head at the Division of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases. ICMR focuses on the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research with a research priority on new and existing diseases.

The International Development of Research Centre (IDCR) will be represented by Dominique Charron, Director of IDRC’s Agriculture and Environment program. Part of Canada’s foreign affairs and development efforts, IDRC invests in knowledge, innovation, and solutions to improve lives and livelihoods in developing regions of the world. Bringing together the right partners around opportunities for impact, IDRC builds leaders for today and tomorrow and helps drive large-scale positive change.

“New diseases continue to surprise us and have devastating impacts on the world’s poor,” said IDRC President Jean Lebel, “IDRC is pleased to be part of this important global effort to mobilize and coordinate resources for research to respond and better prepare for the next emergency.”

The Italian Ministry of Health promotes the orientation and planning in matters of health and biomedical research. Gaetano Guglielmi, Deputy General Director – Senior Medical Officer, Head Office IRCCS Health Research will be the representative in GloPID-R.

Members will be attending the annual General Assembly, March 14-15, 2016, which will be hosted by the Health and Human Services Department in Washington D.C. One of the key topics will be the rapidly emerging Zika virus and GloPID-R members’ mobilization.