Dear global health…
How do we educate the next generation of resilient and bold global health leaders? Image made by Sophia Chima via ©Canva.com
We stand at the precipice of change in the global health sector. It’s both terrifying and exhilarating. In January 2025, we saw the first major shift in U.S. global health participation with the issuance of Executive Order 14155. This order directed the United States to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO). Here was the United States (history’s biggest player in global health) stepping away from the table, effective immediately. I remember being overcome
with anxiety, wondering what global health would look like without the U.S.? Then anxiety gave way to giddiness as I considered the opportunity to restructure global health programming to address longstanding issues often overshadowed by the agenda of a few powerful stakeholders. How do we begin to reduce the world’s dependency on a handful of players and create a system that empowers all nations to thrive?
I think one simple solution is to raise the next generation of global health leaders who will boldly reimagine global health programming. On a podcast episode of “What Now? With Trevor Noah,” newly appointed New York mayor Zohran Mamdani reflected on leadership and emphasized that simply “keeping things running” is not enough. In building his team, he sought out individuals who “had a vision for improving the system, not just maintaining it.” That mindset is exactly what global health needs. Leaders need to be willing to challenge existing structures to build more equitable and resilient systems. Developing such leaders is the first step toward enabling countries to sustain and advance their own health systems. But visionaries cannot be nurtured within a silo.
Global health must actively recruit and develop talent from a broad array of disciplines, including business, agriculture, and the fine arts. When we limit global health training to a single discipline, we exclude potential future innovators. As a basic biologist studying disease at the intersection of immunology, virology, and global health, I recognize that interdisciplinary perspectives fuel creativity and system-level thinking. By embracing this approach, we develop professionals who are both technically competent and capable of designing solutions that work in the real-world complexity of their communities.
This leads me to my last point: global health entities need to prioritize investing in education that supports talent returning home. Many low- and middle-income countries often lose skilled professionals to higher-income settings. This phenomenon, known as “brain drain,” leaves critical leadership gaps in national programs. International experience can broaden expertise, but it must be paired with efforts to support professionals returning to their home countries. This might involve teaching students how to diversify funding sources for local initiatives or encouraging collaborative capstone projects in their home countries. In this way, knowledge gained abroad can strengthen local health systems sustainably, without forcing the community to rely on external actors for daily operations. Without these foundations, even well-funded initiatives risk collapse when resources or politics shift.
Yes, the irony is not lost on me that I am writing this to a mostly American audience. But the U.S. needs to recognize the transformations that are underway in the health landscape. Should it ever re-engage in global health, it should do so as a partner rather than a dominant player. The future of global health should not reside in any one nation, but in an international generation willing to imagine and build a system grounded in equity, interdisciplinary training, and sustainable leadership. Our role, as current and future leaders, is to ensure that vision becomes reality.
Sophia Chioma Chima is a PhD candidate in the Pathobiology program at the School of Public Health, University of Washington. She is also a Predoctoral Research Associate in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Research department. She’s passionate about translating scientific discoveries into practical strategies and insights for families, healthcare providers, and the broader scientific community.