Newsletter
July 2025
Strengthening Global Preparedness: Strategic Milestones and New Partners
Dear readers,
Nothing happens quickly in outbreak response unless it’s already planned. When pandemic emergencies emerge, research responses succeed only when institutional frameworks, funding mechanisms, and coordination protocols are pre-positioned and ready for immediate activation. GLoPID-R’s mission centers on systematic pre-planning that enables immediate research mobilization during crisis. Our recent developments represent advances in preparedness systems that will be ready for immediate deployment when the next pandemic emerges.
Regional response capacity pre-established. We were proud to contribute meaningfully to the Twelfth EDCTP Forum, where GloPID-R hosted a symposium on improving preparedness capabilities. This gathering reaffirmed the value of inclusive partnerships, showcasing the vital role of our Africa Hub in supporting coordination among funders and enhancing response capacity across the continent.
Data sharing protocols pre-positioned for immediate activation. Our Data Sharing Working Group also reached a significant milestone, launching a practical Data Sharing Implementation Guide. This tool was developed to help funders support grantees in making research data available quickly and ethically during infectious disease outbreaks—a cornerstone of rapid and effective global responses.
Dr. Kathrin Happe joins our Berlin Secretariat as Head of Operations and Team Lead of the Berlin Secretariat. Kathrin brings a strong track record in science management and policy advice, which will greatly benefit our strategic and operational coordination moving forward.
Coordinated funding mechanisms soon to be ready for deployment. The upcoming launch of GloPID-R’s Call 1 of GRIPP (Global Research Improving Pandemic Preparedness) with delivery coordinated in partnership with the EDCTP Association, signals the start of an exciting new chapter. This coordinated funding mechanism will help align global investment in pandemic preparedness and response research—a goal at the heart of GloPID-R’s mission.
These developments represent advances in pre-positioning research response infrastructure for immediate activation during pandemic emergencies.
Continuing in partnership,
The GLoPID-R Board
GloPID-R news
Secretariat Update: Dr Kathrin Happe joins the GloPID-R Secretariat
We are happy to announce Kathrin Happe joining our Berlin Secretariat as the Head of Operations and the Berlin Secretariat’s Team Lead. With around 20 years’ experience in science management and science policy advice, Kathrin brings valuable expertise to GloPID-R. This includes her role as deputy head of the science-policy advice department at the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, where she coordinated interdisciplinary working groups in public and global health. She focuses on aligning people, strategy and operations to ensure projects run smoothly and purposefully. She is also a certified executive coach.
Data Sharing Working Group launches Implementation Guide
GloPID-R’s Data Sharing Working Group, officially launched its suite of implementation tools at a two-day event in Annecy on April 29–30, 2025, including a dedicated GloPID-R Data Sharing Implementation Guide — a forward-looking and practical tool to help research funders support their grantees in sharing research data during outbreaks. Read more.
GRIPP announces Call 1 and Partnership with EDCTP
Following a collaborative and iterative process with funders, GloPID-R is happy to announce its partnership with the EDCTP Association to implement Call 1 of their Coordinated Funding Mechanism, Global Research Improving Pandemic Preparedness (GRIPP). Preparatory work is actively underway, and we look forward to sharing full details with the membership soon to support broad circulation and engagement.
GloPID-R Participation at the EDCTP Forum
At the Twelfth EDCTP Forum, GloPID-R convened a symposium, co-chaired by GloPID-R Board Member and Global Health EDCTP3’s Senior Scientific Officer, Dr Jean Marie Vianney Habarugira, and Val Snewin, Head of Global Health Research Partnerships in the UK Government Department of Health and Social Care – a GloPID-R Member.
During the session, titled, “Improving our preparedness capabilities for global response to infectious diseases,” Dr Duduzile Ndwandwe from the South African Medical Research Council presented the work of GloPID-R’s Africa Hub, which she leads. As a core GloPID-R initiative, the Africa Hub aims to strengthen coordination among African research funders, enhancing regional preparedness and contributing to more effective, collaborative global responses to infectious disease threats. Read more
Research Prioritization Framework Development
The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a new guidance document to support ethical decision-making in health research priority setting. As research budgets tighten, the guidance offers a timely framework to ensure that decisions about which health research to fund are made systematically, transparently, and in line with ethical principles—particularly justice.
GloPID-R contributed to the development of this guidance in its role as a key convenor of global funders focused on emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Our network brings together those investing in research where needs are urgent and resources are constrained. Supporting ethically grounded research prioritization is core to GloPID-R’s mission of promoting equitable, coordinated, and impactful responses to infectious disease threats. Read more
Join Us on Blue Sky
GloPID-R is now on Bluesky! Follow us @glopid-r.bsky.social to stay informed about our latest news, initiatives, and global efforts in infectious disease preparedness and response.
Member news
EDCTP
The Twelfth EDCTP Forum
The Twelfth EDCTP Forum took place in Kigali, Rwana from 15 to 20 June. The event was jointly organized by Global Health EDCTP3 and the EDCTP Association, and was hosted by Ministry of Health of Rwanda and the Rwanda Biomedical Centre.
The theme for this year’s forum was, ‘Better health through global research partnerships,’ highlighting the importance of international collaboration in advancing health research and innovation. For more details about the Forum, visit the EDCTP Forum news page.
ANRS MIE
Scientific Facilitation
CORCs Filoviruses WHO
Recently appointed by WHO to lead the Collaborative Open Research Consortium (CORC) on filoviruses, ANRS MIE continues to advance global preparedness through this new mandate as a WHO Collaborating Center. Two expert meetings have already been held: one focused on filovirus reservoirs, and another on pathophysiology and disease models. Two additional global CORC meetings are planned for later this year, covering diagnostics, and treatments and vaccines. The outputs of these CORC activities will help inform the scope and priorities of future GloPID-R calls for proposals.
Strategic Projects
CoMeCT – Outbreak Response Board- ToR
The ANRS MIE is involved in the CSA CoMeCT (Coordination Mechanism for Cohorts and Trials), globally coordinated by Norway, which aims to coordinate clinical research efforts at the European level.
