S7-Episode 2: Bringing Health to the World

“You see, we're not doing this work to make ourselves feel better. That sort of conventional notion of what a do-gooder is. We're doing this work because we are totally convinced that it's not necessary in today's wealthy world for so many people to be experiencing discomfort, for so many people to be experiencing hardship, for so many people to have their lives and their livelihoods imperiled.”

Dr. David Nabarro has dedicated his life to global health. After a long career that’s taken him from the horrors of war torn Iraq, to the devastating aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami, he is still spurred to action by the tremendous inequalities in global access to medical care.

“The thing that keeps me awake most at night is the rampant inequities in our world…We see an awful lot of needless suffering.”

:: David Nabarro interviewed by Melissa Fleming

Brazilian ballet pirouettes during pandemic

Ballet Manguinhos, named for its favela in Rio de Janeiro, returns to the stage after a long absence during the COVID-19 pandemic. It counts 250 children and teenagers from the favela as its performers. The ballet group provides social support in a community where poverty, hunger and teen pregnancy are constant issues.

Radio journalist gives the facts on COVID-19 in Uzbekistan

The pandemic has put many people to the test, and journalists are no exception. Coronavirus has waged war not only against people's lives and well-being but has also spawned countless hoaxes and scientific falsehoods.

Access to information is the cure of disinformation

The pandemic has exposed how important it is for the right to access to information to be respected and for accurate reliable information to be freely available for decision-making by both governments and citizens: A win-win situation.

Protecting refugees from COVID-19 misinformation

The COVID-19 inoculation is "just like any other vaccine" a UN Women staff member is telling the Syrian refugee women she cares for in camps in Jordan, as she tries to combat misinformation and false rumours, and avoid spikes in infection. 

Community radio fights misinformation for Venezuelan refugees and migrants in Brazil

Venezuela's community of refugees and migrants in Boa Vista, Brazil is fighting misinformation with the community radio programme La Voz de los Refugiados. In a studio that works as a radio laboratory inside a refugee shelter, eleven volunteers record podcasts answering questions from the community and thus fighting misinformation about COVID-19, documents, access to rights in Brazil, job search and other topics.

Cartoon helps indigenous children to fight COVID-19

In the heart of the Amazonas state, young Brazilian communicators had a powerful idea to teach prevention against COVID-19 in a soft and playful way for indigenous children. “I feel privileged to be part of something that can impact many people's lives,” says Anderson Teles Marques, 28-year-old video editor and photographer and member of the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (Coiab, in Portuguese).

Cooperative recovers sales with e-commerce during the pandemic

Denise Cardoso has partnered with companies in São Paulo and Salvador to take up sales for family farms in northeastern Bahia.

Holocaust survivor lifts lockdown spirits with jazz

On 17 March 1943, an 11-year-old Simon Gronowski was taken by the Gestapo in Brussels, Belgium with his mother Chana and sister Ita. The young Jewish boy was being deported to the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz when, “by a miracle, I jumped from the train and escaped,” he recounts. His mother and sister died in Auschwitz and his father, Leon, left devastated by their deaths, also passed away within months of the end of the war. The young Gronowski was left alone in the world.

“We are the action,” says young Brazilian climate activist

Brazilian activist Paloma Costa is creating a new generation of youth engaged in climate activism. At the age of 27, she led Brazil's delegation to the Youth Climate Summit in 2019, and coordinated the climate working group at Engajamundo, which invited youth to participate in "Fridays for the future" and climate strikes. The organization was born following the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, also known as Rio + 20. During the event, which took place almost 10 years ago, many young people felt that their views had not been adequately represented by world leaders and UN agencies.

Smartphone apps help Palestine refugees seek healthcare during COVID-19

During the Covid-19 pandemic when social distancing is a key factor in limiting transmission, Palestinian refugees are able to use smartphone apps to access an online healthcare network through the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). The refugees receive reminders to take medicine, check blood pressure and exercise. They can check their test results and message healthcare providers.

COVID-19 convent outbreak shows risk to seniors

For Sister Juliet Lithemba, the past year has been “nothing short of grace and mercy from above,” as she explains it. The 77-year-old resident of Mt Royal Convent of the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa, located in Lesotho’s Leribe district, didn’t know much about COVID-19 until her convent home and fellow sisters were infected by the deadly virus.

Brazilian slave labor victims learn new careers during Covid-19

Top Brazilian designers led a workshop earlier this year to teach victims of slave labor a new and more dignified career in fashion. The workshop is part of the "Slave Labour Never Again" project: a collaboration among the Public Ministry for Employment, the  International Labour Organization (ILO) and the University of Campinas (Unicamp). 

EU airlines join forces with UNICEF to transport COVID-19 vaccines around world

Major European airlines are among those helping UNICEF in its historic mission to deliver COVID-19 vaccines, essential medicines and medical devices across the globe in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Meet women scientists at the forefront of COVID-19 research

Women researchers have been at the forefront of the fight against COVID-19, with female scientists across the globe playing pivotal roles, from advancing knowledge on the virus, to developing vaccines, treating patients and assessing the pandemic’s devastating economic and social impact.