ASPHER Statement on Conflict and War in Israel and Gaza
June 5, 2025
The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) has issued a powerful statement calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Israel, expressing deep concern over the ongoing humanitarian and public health catastrophe. Representing 130 Schools of Public Health, including institutions in both Israel and Palestine, ASPHER emphasizes the moral and professional duty of academic public health leaders to protect life, uphold human dignity, and advocate for peace. Under current conditions, the association asserts that sustaining public health activities is impossible and urges for immediate international action, including a full and sustained ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian aid access, and multilateral diplomatic engagement to restore peace and security.
“There is no public health without peace,” ASPHER declares, reaffirming its commitment to recovery and solidarity, and emphasizing the role of public health in building a just and lasting peace for all in the region.
Read the full statement here.
World Health Assembly Adopts Historic Pandemic Agreement
May 20, 2025
On May 20, 2025, the World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement, a truly historic milestone in the evolution of global health governance. This landmark treaty reflects a strong international commitment to improving coordination and preparedness for future pandemics, though important elements will still need to be worked on and agreed upon at the next World Health Assembly in 2026.
In a statement issued on May 22, 2025, the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER), a member of the Global Network for Academic Public Health (GNAPH), outlined why this agreement represents a groundbreaking advancement in global health collaboration for a more cohesive and equitable global response to health emergencies.
GNAPH members will continue to work with their institutional members across all WHO regions to ensure effective implementation of the new WHO Pandemic Treaty and to engage our schools and programs in their vital role of creating a world that protects and improves the health of people and the planet.
Africa CDC PHEM Fellowship Task Force
May 13, 2025
At the request of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ASPPH convened the Africa CDC Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) Fellowship Task Force in November 2024 with the specific goal of assessing the fellowship program. The Task Force included content experts from ASPPH member institutions and individuals identified by the Association of Schools of Public Health in Africa (ASPHA) to evaluate the curriculum and offer regional insights.
The group conducted a thorough review of fellowship materials, identifying program strengths and offering key recommendations, which were compiled into a report and presented to Africa CDC in April. The evaluation focused on curriculum content, pacing, student feedback, and current monitoring and evaluation processes and aims to help Africa CDC enhance and expand the fellowship’s impact.
To learn more, please visit the ASPPH Global Action page on this initiative.
Upcoming Member Events
June 2025
ASPHER 2025 Deans’ & Directors’ Retreat
November 2025
APACPH Conference 2025
LSHTM Response to Funding Cuts and Attacks on Science
April 10, 2025
The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has released a statement from LSHTM’s Executive Team on the threats to global health programmes and research responding to the US funding cuts and attacks on science. Recognizing the widespread implications of recent actions by the new presidential administration – decreased access to medication and health services, constraints on international collaboration, reduced research capacity, dismantled health programs and infrastructure – LSHTM is raising a call to action for institutions and policy-makers around the world to come together and mitigate the resulting negative health impacts. The LSHTM mission is to “improve health and health equity both in the UK and worldwide through research and education” and it has affirmed its dedication to continue educating and supporting the next generation of health scientists and leaders as well as working with partners to defend the freedoms of academic inquiry and speech and protect the health and wellbeing of frontline workers and communities worldwide.
APACPH 2024: The 55th Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health Conference
October 23 – 25, 2024
The Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) will be hosting its 55th conference in Bexco, Busan, Korea from October 23 – 25, 2024. This year’s focus, Public Health: Shifting Paradigm for Future Society and Community, includes panel discussions, oral presentations, pre- and post-conference workshops, and a talk concert featuring prominent speakers and experts in academic public health from around the world. With topics ranging from disease control and education to wellness across the life course; from ensuring health equity to examining policies and systems, APACPH and its member institutions seek to spearhead the advancement of scientific technologies, engage on the essential roles and contributions of public health, and explore critical preparations and responsibilities needed to envision and shape a healthy future for all.
Early-bird registration ends September 30. To register, log in or sign up today.
ASPPH and ASPHER Release Statements in Response to COP28
ASPPH and ASPHER both released statements supporting the first ever Health Day at the 28th UN Climate Change Conference (COP28). Academic public health institutions educate the public health leaders who will be on the front lines of the health crises that are the result of climate change, conduct the research needed to make evidence-based decisions, and collaborate with communities to address current public health issues.
The ASPPH statement calls for:
- Funding research and training programs to support schools and programs of public health
- Strengthening public health systems
- Supporting research on the health impacts of climate change
- Phasing down use of fossil fuels and halting further investment in them
- Investing in research on a just transition to newer energy technologies
The ASPHER statement lays out an action plan:
- Recognition of the linkage between climate change and health
- An integrated approach to climate change and health
- Solidarity across countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while reducing the impacts of climate change on health
- Reducing the impact of climate change on health inequalities
- Training and capacity building in climate change and health for multiple stakeholders
- Well-funded interventional transdisciplinary research on climate change and health
- Advocacy on climate change and health
Report: From Analysis to Action – Climate change litigation: a guide for PH professionals
From Analysis to Action – Climate change litigation: a guide for PH professionals was a collaborative effort among 11 organizations including GNAPH as well as two of its comprising members – ASPPH and ASPHER – and offers extensive insight into the role of public health experts and scientists required to provide evidence in court pertaining to climate litigation. Written not only for the core public health workforce but also the wider community of health professionals and environmental advocates engaged in climate change litigation, this guide is applicable across differing legal systems and jurisdictions.
Specifically, the guide:
- Explains the phenomenon of climate change litigation for public health practitioners and provides an overview of key developments;
- Identifies how the skills required to deliver compelling written and oral scientific evidence of human harms in climate change litigation can be grounded in public health competencies;
- Offers insights and lessons learned from prior climate change litigation, based all or in part on evidence of human harms.
This report, launched at the EUPHA Conference in Dublin in November 2023, has received significant global interest from public health colleagues and organizations globally. With the goal of widely disseminating this valuable work and further advancing the agenda of building ethical legal competence and capacity of public health professionals, GNAPH is proud to share this report and encourages engagement in related upcoming activities.