Weez Blog

Dr. Sally Stansfield : Technology and Global Health

Part of the reason the world mobilized against polio rather than measles, is that polio leaves deformed visible behind. Measles is a much larger killer. A non-killer here. Out of sight. Out of mind.

Malnutrition is a basic killer. Food - production of food, basic technology is not getting out to much of the world.

Condoms are a simple and boring technology. It's not getting out there to much of the world.

Filtering water - a basic technology is not getting out to much of the world. (Insert horrifying picture of a guinea worm, parasite eating flesh. Lethal. Horrible. Stoppable with filtered water).

"Think globally : Act locally"

No. Act globally.
There is much of the world that needs basic technologies - that provides opportunity for significant places to act. If some of the things that happened in the third world happened here, there would be revolution.

Public Goods are those which are open to all, that when given do not diminish what is available: sunshine, peace, stable governments...Global public goods have no proponents. (Nations may consider public goods locally, but there is no incentive to think globally). There is a need for cross border actors.

An AIDs vaccine is an example of global public good. It will not do anything for the individual. It will be taken to protect the community. It stops transmission, not healing the individual. It requires a change in the way we think. Thinking about larger communities rather than individual benefit/profit. The individual benefits, but does so within the context of the larger community. (This is the theme).

It is a complicated situation. If we take care of small measures, but do not address the systemic problems (poverty -- which causes ill health, destabilized governments), then we cure/or make better individuals who can then carry diseases to others- see AIDs.

There is some hope. Examples of pharmeceutical companies providing drugs and programs to vaccinate. Bono's work on debt relief for the third world.

We are uniquely positioned to act across borders. Motiviations: health security, moral inequity, or drive for new healthy markets. It doesn't matter.

Think Globally. Act Globally

Me: Discussions the previous night about working on longevity seems trivial in the face of much of the world no making it to thirty because of disease, malnutrition, poverty, political chaos, and ecconomics.

Posted by weez at October 19, 2003 09:27 AM