Gavin Yamey presents at TEDxBerlinSalon on Global Health 2035

January 29, 2015


Left to right: Gavin Yamey, Ola Orekunrin, David Hermlin, Mallence Bart-Williams, Taiye Selasi
© Sebastian Gabsch

Berlin, Germany - On January 15, hundreds gathered in Berlin, Germany at a TEDxBerlinSalon dedicated to the Year for Development. With the Millennium Development Goals coming to a close and governments, development organizations, and citizens crafting a new global framework, 2015 is a particularly important year for international development. The TEDxBerlin Salon, "Chances. Challenges. Changes. Development 2015 and Beyond," highlighted the big issues that should be tackled moving forward, including a presentation on global health by Gavin Yamey of the Lancet Commission on Investing in Health.

In his talk, "Achieving a Grand Convergence in Health by 2035", Dr. Yamey called attention to the tremendous opportunity the global community has to achieve "a grand convergence in global health" – that is, reducing child, maternal, and infectious disease deaths around the world to universally low levels within just one generation. Dr. Yamey presented evidence from the Commission's Global Health 2035 report, and outlined the necessary health investments needed to close the global health equity gap.

This Berlin presentation was particularly important as Germany is chairing the G7 this year and is in a unique role to shape future global health priorities. By focusing on research and development, Germany can play a huge role in helping to achieve a grand convergence in global health.  On January 27th, at a donor pledging conference in Berlin, the international community made a critical step towards this by pledging over $7.5 billion to GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance.

The TEDxBerlinSalon also covered other critical development issues, such as the fight against poverty, good governance, and the rise of Africa as the continent of the future. Speakers included writer, filmmaker, and fashion designer Mallence Bart-Williams, young musician and performer David Hermlin, medical doctor and helicopter pilot Ola Orekunrin, and writer and photographer Taiye Selasi. Find out more about these creative and inspiring speakers and explore the event photos.