In the series premiere of “Global Health Diplomats”, Eric Goosby and Ben Plumleyexplore the continuing saga of the origins of SARS CoV2 and the role of global health diplomacy in fostering international collaboration in fighting pandemics threats - and who better to discuss this with than our first guest, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the recently retired director of the National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Disease.
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About the hosts:
Eric Goosby is an American public health official and professor at UCSF, where he directs the Center for Global Health Delivery and Diplomacy. An infectious disease specialist, he treated patients at San Francisco General Hospital when HIV/AIDS first began to emerge and take its toll in the early 1980s. Eric joined the Clinton administration to administer newly-authorized Ryan White CARE Act, overseeing the distribution of federal funds and the planning of services in 25 AIDS epicenters, as well as in all 50 states and U.S. territories. He went on to co-found the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, where he helped develop and implement HIV national treatment scale-up plans in Rwanda, South Africa, China, and Ukraine. In 2009, he was tapped by President Obama to be his Global AIDS Coordinator, heading up the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a position he held until 2013. He went on to be the UN Special Envoy on Tuberculosis. Eric likes very strong coffee, and is being educated by Ben on the joys of podcasting.
Ben Plumley is a global health strategist, currently the Head of Digital Advocacy and Outreach at the Global Health Listening Project, and founder of the Global Health Strategy Agency, Hunuvat. He was Chief of Staff to the Founding Executive Director of UNAIDS, and Executive Director of the Global Business Coalition on HIV & AIDS. He held senior roles in Glaxo Wellcome and Johnson & Johnson. In 2010, he was appointed CEO of the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, succeeding Eric Goosby, where he advised national governments, corporations, the UN and community organizations on infectious disease treatment and prevention strategies in Zimbabwe, Nigeria, China, Ukraine, Laos and South Africa. He is Co-Chair of the MTV Staying Alive Foundation, and President of the San Francisco Community Health Center. His journey into podcasting began in 2018 with A Shot In The Arm Podcast. Eric has been a mentor to Ben since the early 2000s, including his passion for exceptionally strong coffee.