Tracing a trajectory from her medical education in China through a masters degree and PhD in Japan and a fellowship at the National Cancer Institute, Lifang Hou, MD, PhD, has cultivated an international career which now includes spearheading global cancer prevention initiatives that span from Africa to South America. In this episode, she discusses her career journey and how her work in genetics, epigenetics, and early cancer detection is helping bring affordable screening and prevention strategies to underserved communities around the world.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special bonus episode of Explore Global Health features Jarbas Barbosa da Silva Jr., MD, MPH, Ph, Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), in conversation with Rob Murphy, MD. The discussion explores what it takes to build resilient health systems in an increasingly complex global landscape, drawing on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, the evolving role of primary health care, and the importance of regional collaboration, governance, and trust. Barbosa also shares insights on the future of global health, including the growing role of artificial intelligence and advice for the next generation entering the field.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH) annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special bonus episode of Explore Global Health features physicist and former NOAA satellite director Stephen Volz, PhD, whose career spans NASA, Earth observation, and global environmental science. He explains how satellite data and Earth system science are transforming our understanding of planetary health—and why that matters for human health outcomes worldwide. From the "triple planetary crisis" to the critical role of finance, Volz explores how environmental data, global collaboration, and local action must come together to build a sustainable and healthier future.

The new Center for Global Pediatric Health, an initiative between the Robert J. Havey, MD Institute for Global Health and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, is building a global community committed to improving the health of children worldwide. In this episode, Drs. Colleen Fant and Sahera Dirajlal-Fargo, co-directors of the new center, discuss their goals for the center, their own journeys in global pediatric health as well as emerging trends and challenges in pediatric care worldwide.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special episode of Explore Global Health features Tracy Rabin, MD (Yale University) and James Hudspeth, MD (Boston University) about the future of global health education. They explore the importance of truly bidirectional partnerships, the policy barriers that limit international clinicians from training in the U.S., and what institutions can do now to create more equitable, impactful collaborations.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special episode of Explore Global Health features Joaquin Barnoya, Md, PhD, Guatemala's Minister of Public Health and Social Assistance. They explore the future of global health, the critical role of primary care. Barnoya also shares insights from his journey from academia to leadership—and advice for the next generation of global health professionals.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special episode of Explore Global Health features Solange Baptiste, Executive Director, ITPC Global and explores how AI can either advance equity or deepen existing disparities and why community leadership must remain at the center.

Recorded at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health annual meeting in Washington, D.C., this special episode of Explore Global Health explores what lies ahead for the future of global health at a critical moment in time. Dr. Rob Murphy sits down with CUGH Executive Director Keith Martin, MD, to discuss the challenges shaping the field—from funding cuts and geopolitical conflict to climate-driven health threats—and the reasons for optimism, including a new generation of leaders committed to collaboration and impact. This episode offers a front-row seat to the conversations defining the future of global health—and a call to action for those ready to shape it.

From the early days of the HIV epidemic to today's emerging and global threats, David Hamer, MD, has spent more than three decades studying infectious diseases around the world. In this episode, he discusses his path to global health, his work with major global health research and surveillance efforts, including projects on neonatal infections, emerging diseases, and pandemic preparedness and his concerns. He also shares advice for students entering the field of glob;a health and his concerns about reduced U.S. global health funding and climate change–driven outbreaks. Hamer is a professor of global health and Medicine at Boston University and an adjunct professor of nutrition at the Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition, Science and Policy.

Tulio de Oliveira, PhD, a Brazilian-born scientist who calls South Africa home, has become one of the world's most sought-after bioinformatics specialists and leaders in infectious disease outbreak surveillance. His contributions to global health are many and include the identification of major variants of concern during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as Beta and Omicron. Today, he is on a mission to ensure that genomic science in Africa doesn't just contribute to the field of global health, but helps lead it. In this episode, Dr. Rob Murphy talks to de Oliveira about his career path in global health and why he thinks now is a critical time for young people to enter the field.