AUGUST 2018

Building the Next Generation of Business-Minded Global Health Leaders

USAID joined forces with GlaxoSmithKline and Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management to launch the GSK | Kellogg | USAID Global Health Case Competition. This first-of-its-kind competition targets business and public health graduate students to identify sustainable solutions to global health challenges, helping to build and connect future generations of global business leaders and save lives. Learn more.

Whatever Happened to...the Car Mechanic who Invented a Device to Pop Out a Baby?

NPR published a piece on Jorge Odón, the Argentinian car mechanic who created the Odon Device to address maternal and newborn deaths associated with prolonged or complicated second-stage labor. The device received Saving Lives at Birth funding for development and testing by the WHO and was licensed by Becton, Dickinson & Co.

Leveraging Mentorship Opportunities: Practical Ways Innovators Can Build a Lasting Support Network

The SL@B 8th annual DevelopmentXChange included more than 200 curated partnering and mentoring meetings for SL@B innovators , representing over 40 organizations. These SL@B mentors shared their ideas with VentureWell, an Accelerating SL@B partner, on practical ways that innovators can leverage a single, initial mentor session to gain a much-needed support network. Read more.

Do not Fear the Drones Air-dropping 50,000 Mosquitoes from Above

Smithsonian Magazine featured WeRobotics, a Combating Zika and Future Threats Grand Challenge innovator, and its work in partnership with the International Atomic Energy Agency in Brazil to test a mechanism that releases sterile mosquitoes from unmanned aerial vehicles. This method  of vector control aims to reduce the number of mosquitoes carrying infectious diseases such as Zika. Read the article.

It's 'Shark Tank' for Global Health Inventions

Each year, the Saving Lives at Birth DevelopmentXChange hosts a live pitch competition. At this year’s pitch competition, 10 of the most promising innovators and current SL@B grantees were invited to present their concepts, which have the potential to drastically reduce maternal and newborn mortality. The 10 finalists were selected from a highly competitive pool of nearly 500 applications. Read more from this NPR article.