WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit 2023
The first WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit “Towards health and well-being for all” was held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, on 17-18 August 2023, to look anew at the application of rigorous scientific methods to unlock the vast potential of traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine (TCIM) amidst important challenges and opportunities to realize universal health coverage and promote health and well-being for individuals and the planet. Participants in the Summit, coming from all WHO regions, included a range of stakeholders: from health and TCIM practitioners; civil society representatives and Indigenous Peoples; to health policy and decision-makers and government officials from the G20 and other countries. Based on the research and evidence-informed discussions and initiatives presented in the Summit’s five plenary and six parallel sessions, participants endorsed the outcomes of the Summit in a meeting report: The Gujarat Declaration. The document sets out an action agenda towards the implementation of evidence-based TCIM interventions and approaches in support of the goal of universal health coverage and health-related Sustainable Development Goals, among others, and the application of science, technology, innovation, and knowledge exchange to validate and unlock, as appropriate, the contribution of TCIM and Indigenous knowledge to advance planetary health and individual health and well-being across the life course. The Gujarat Declaration Report can be obtained here.
New Rural Initiative Focuses On Age-Friendly Care
The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) released an an article in Rural Horizons entitled, “New NRHA Initiative Focuses on Age-Friendly Care.” This initiative will help providers offer comprehensive age-friendly care to one in five older adults living in rural areas. These individuals face unique concerns not shared by their urban counterparts. Issues such as traveling farther distances, fewer community spaces, hospital closures, and health care provider shortages have left rural older adults at higher risk for worsening health outcomes. The article can be obtained here.
Imagining The Future Of Postsecondary Education
Postsecondary education is in a unique moment ripe for reinvention. Members of young age groups are reexamining the value of a college degree as enrollment declines, survey data show Americans have less faith in a four-year degree, and concerns about college debt are widespread. Employers are hungry for talent, especially since the “Great Resignation,” when large numbers of workers quit their jobs following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This environment has created new leverage for workers as support for unions and demands for better pay and working conditions have increased and some employers have reexamined degree requirements. The Urban Institute hosted a two-day workshop in early June 2023 to reimagine the future of postsecondary education so everyone can access a high-quality and affordable education that prepares them for good jobs. Workshop participants included representatives from education, government, research, philanthropy, and business. Together they worked to generate ideas for imagining a more equitable future through postsecondary education, including how to support learners at all points on their education journey through two-generation strategies, robust navigation, effective use of technology, development of a skills infrastructure, and cross-cutting investments to close racial wealth gaps. A workshop report contains the questions that were considered and five interrelated ideas that emerged. The document can be obtained here.