Event Recaps

Preparing for the Next Pandemic

On November 8, 2021 CRDF Global hosted “Preparing for the Next Pandemic”, a panel discussion with CRDF Global Senior Technical Advisor for Global Health Dr. Julie Fischer, Dr. Erin Sorrell of Georgetown University, Dr. Gregory Kolbentz of George Mason University, and Dr. Gerald Parker of Texas A&M University.

The panel discussed a variety of lessons learned from the global policy response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, including how the pandemic has changed biorisk management practices, how different national readiness and response patterns rendered different results in mitigating disease spread and reach, and the importance of zoonotic disease surveillance and research.

Panelists also recommended key actions needed to forestall future pandemics, including increased international cooperation on disease surveillance, robust and executable mitigation plans, improved public, diplomatic, and scientific communication, and a no-fault approach to uncover and rectify deficiencies in laboratory systems and management.