Letter from Loyce: The Evolution of Global Health Council

Allow me to introduce you to Global Health Council circa 2020.

Global health is evolving quickly, responding to shifts in funding, leadership and overall disease burden. Global Health Council (GHC) is evolving, too. Heading into a new decade, innovation is required for progress and, as cliché as it sounds, business as usual just won’t work any longer. So, GHC has spent the past year developing a new strategic framework that provides steady stewardship as our community navigates today’s dynamic environment.

What does this mean in practice? First and foremost, GHC’s mission and vision have not changed. We will continue defending global health funding and program priorities. But our efforts are being enhanced and expanded. Specifically, we are building upon our core business of U.S. budget advocacy by driving a broader suite of policy initiatives. And we’ll be growing our global footprint, helping elevate regional champions and campaigns that can supplement U.S. outreach. We will share more on the details behind this approach soon, so be sure to stay tuned!

Embedded in new strategic framework is the understanding that it is time for us to be bold—even inspirational. This means continuing to collaborate with long-time partners who have worked with us to affect positive change, including our peers here in D.C. – with whom we have been working to develop a proposal for U.S. policymakers. Together, we have continued to argue for a new agenda in global health that builds on and further enhances our collective legacy. 

Being bold also means working with colleagues overseas, using our success in furthering the global health advocacy agenda to support other stakeholders worldwide. We want to share the lessons we’ve learned throughout our decades of advocacy to help new partners – from donor countries to burgeoning advocacy communities in low and middle-income countries, and beyond.

If these goals sound lofty, they are. Reaching them requires a strong and talented team of people. The individuals who have helped GHC lay its critical groundwork in recent years are extraordinary. I am very grateful to them for helping us get to where we are today.

As we move into this next phase, we have added new team members who bring both direct advocacy and on-the-ground experience to the table, domestically and globally. These individuals are ready to lead us into the future by putting our new strategic plan into action. I encourage you to “meet” our current team here.

This is a very exciting time for GHC! We are looking forward to collaborating with all of you to bring our strategic plan to life.

Global health faces many challenges today, but they are nothing new for our community. Let’s build on the progress we’ve achieved together. Let’s create a world where health and wellbeing for all is assured. Join us in creating a new vision for global health.