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WHO highlights health risks and opportunities in the global waste crisis
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, Throwing away our health: the impacts of solid waste on human health – evidence, knowledge gaps and health sector responses, warns that poorly managed solid waste is driving a public health crisis and calls for urgent action to protect people and the environments they live in.Globally, the volume of municipal solid waste is growing at an unprecedented rate. Yet, many countries still lack the systems and resources to manage this waste safely. “Solid waste reflects how our societies produce and consume, and how we treat people and the environment in the process,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director a.i., Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health & Migration at the World Health Organization. “If we continue to treat waste as an afterthought, we will lock in avoidable disease, climate pollution and deep social inequities. This report is a clear call to put health and equity at the centre of how we design, manage and ultimately reduce waste.”The report summarizes evidence on how solid waste – especially municipal solid waste – affects health through polluted air, water, soil and food. When waste is not collected, or is dumped, burned or not poorly treated, it can release hazardous chemicals, contaminate drinking-water sources and create breeding grounds for insects and rodents.Communities underserved by waste management services, those living near dumpsites and poorly managed landfills and incinerators, children and pregnant women, as well as waste workers – particularly those working informally – face the greatest risks. For the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) community, the report underlines that safe management of municipal and health care waste is integral to safely managed, climate-resilient systems.A large share of municipal solid waste is still not collected or is disposed of in uncontrolled conditions, including open dumpsites and open burning. These practices damage ecosystems, contribute to climate change and undermine efforts to build healthy cities. When waste is properly managed, however, it can become a resource – generating energy and creating green jobs. The report calls for a coordinated, multisectoral response grounded in the waste hierarchy: preventing waste where possible, then reducing, reusing and recycling, with safe recovery and disposal.Key actions for governments and partners include reducing waste generation at source; expanding affordable and reliable waste collection services, especially in underserved communities; improving control at recovery and disposal facilities; and eliminating open dumping and burning, including hazardous waste. The new report identifies a central role for the health sector in addressing solid waste as a public health threat. The health sector can prevent and minimize health-care waste at source, improve segregation and safe treatment, invest in cleaner climate-resilient technologies, and advocate for health-protective policies and standards. The report also encourages more surveillance, research and biomonitoring to strengthen the evidence base, and promotes social protection and inclusion of informal waste workers.“This report gives countries and health authorities a very practical agenda,” said Mr Bruce Gordon, Head, Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, WHO. “Health ministries can start now by ensuring safe management of health-care waste, developing strong occupational health programmes for waste workers, and working with municipalities to reduce health risks from solid waste by closing open dumps and burn sites and gradually improving towards safe services. These concrete steps save lives today and will make cities cleaner and healthier in the future.
Week in politics: Crunch time for new health insurance plans, Trump sued over White House renovations, Americans killed by ISIS
Despite being in control of the White House and Congress, Republicans have been unable to pass their health care agenda. We look at why that's the case, as well as a new lawsuit against the president.
Week in politics: Crunch time for new health insurance plans, Trump sued over White House renovations, Americans killed by ISIS
Despite being in control of the White House and Congress, Republicans have been unable to pass their health care agenda. We look at why that's the case, as well as a new lawsuit against the president.
Week in politics: Crunch time for new health insurance plans, Trump sued over White House renovations, Americans killed by ISIS
Despite being in control of the White House and Congress, Republicans have been unable to pass their health care agenda. We look at why that's the case, as well as a new lawsuit against the president.
What's on the agenda for Toure today?
Yes, that's right - Manchester City assistant Kolo Toure will be facing the cameras this lunchtime to preview Sunday's Premier League game at Crystal Palace. Boss Pep Guardiola has a "personal matter" to deal with so is not around today but is expected to return to work on Saturday and will be in the dugout at Selhurst Park. Toure is likely to field questions about City's magnificent win at Real Madrid during the week and the title race as it reaches an important juncture.
Arts and Entertainment Agenda: Dec. 12-18
Arts and Entertainment Agenda: Dec. 12-18
Ars Live: 3 former CDC leaders detail impacts of RFK Jr.’s anti-science agenda
Join us Tuesday, December 16, at 2 pm ET to hear from leaders who resigned in protest.
Capitol agenda: GOP’s health revolt heads to the Senate
John Thune and Mike Johnson can’t get Republicans on the same page on health care.
A divided GOP forges ahead on health care message — without plan to address spiking premiums
Congressional Republicans are taking a major political gamble this week, laying out a GOP health care agenda that ignores the soon-to-expire enhanced subsidies that help tens of millions of Americans afford Obamacare — despite pleas from some in their own party.
A divided GOP forges ahead on health care message — without plan to address spiking premiums
Congressional Republicans are taking a major political gamble this week, laying out a GOP health care agenda that ignores the soon-to-expire enhanced subsidies that help tens of millions of Americans afford Obamacare — despite pleas from some in their own party.
The New WHO Pandemic Treaty and Global Health Governance: Incorporating Common but Differentiated Responsibilities into PABS - Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
On May 20, 2025, the World Health Assembly unanimously adopted the World Health Organization (WHO) Pandemic Agreement, an international treaty designed to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. The product of three years of arduous negotiations, the treaty marks a new era of global cooperation in public health. However, core aspects of the agreement remain unresolved—notably the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) System, which is intended to ensure equitable access to pandemic-related materials and benefits. To support the successful implementation of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” should be formally incorporated into the negotiating agenda of the PABS annex. Introduction For the first time, an international treaty has enshrined the principle of “One Health,” the compelling idea that the health of animals, humans, and the environment all contribute to pandemic risks. SARS (2003), H1N1 (2009–10), Ebola (2014–16), and COVID-19 all emerged through zoonotic spillover from animal hosts—respectively, civets, hogs, and bats. Together, they underscore the need for a coordinated, cross-sectoral approach. The Pandemic Agreement responds to this call, requiring state parties to acknowledge the ecological interplay and commit to a comprehensive “One Health” strategy. Specifically, Article 5 charges governments to address “the drivers of pandemics and the emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease at the human-animal-environment interface,” including wild animal markets, deforestation, and antibiotic overuse. Yet the effectiveness of this “One Health” vision depends equally on the free flow of scientific information and data among countries and institutions. Just as environmental and animal health factors have been neglected in past global frameworks, so too has data sharing been marginalized, despite its centrality to timely detection and response. The Pandemic Agreement takes an important step by requiring governments to enhance data collection and cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO). However, these provisions will remain aspirational without a robust Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) annex. The PABS system will determine whether countries and researchers can rapidly exchange pathogen samples and genetic data while ensuring equitable access to resulting research and development, including diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. Without such mechanisms, the treaty’s promise to operationalize “One Health” and strengthen global preparedness will risk becoming largely symbolic, echoing earlier failures to translate shared principles into coordinated action. Equity Concerns When the 2025 Health Assembly adopted the Pandemic Agreement, it left the difficult question of access to pathogens and the sharing of resulting benefits to be addressed in a separate agreement. Negotiations on this separate agreement, PABS, are now underway in Geneva. Yet governments remain divided over fundamental questions of equity between the countries that primarily contribute to the system and those that primarily draw from it—and consequently benefit. For example, wildlife in countries bordering the equator is likely to produce PABS materials, but companies in Europe are likely to use them to develop lucrative products. The most likely contributor countries are likely to be those biodiverse countries around the equator, such as Brazil, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Indonesia, where the number of human-mammalian viral host interactions is large. Conversely, countries most likely to benefit from this material are those with the technology, investors, and infrastructure to capitalize on genomic data, such as the United States, EU member states, and Japan. This imbalance reflects a broader pattern seen in prior international frameworks. Now, as in the past, the wealthiest countries in the world (a useful heuristic is membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)) disproportionately benefit from systems in which pathogens and genomic sequencing data are contributed to a common source. Under the International Agreement on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (the “Plant Treaty” or “Seed Treaty”) and the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework, companies from Europe and North America disproportionately withdraw biological samples and data for development into lucrative medical products. Their governments and companies have both statutory and contractual claims to the products that those companies correspondingly produce. PABS appears poised to follow the same pattern. The text calls for strong language on access to pathogens and associated data, but the corresponding benefits that should flow to poorer countries are couched in equivocal or non-binding language. Common but Differentiated Responsibilities To address these inequities, the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” should be formally incorporated into the negotiating agenda of the PABS annex. Common but differentiated responsibilities are often a feature of climate change negotiations. The basic principle is that, even though all countries should reduce carbon emissions, governments that became rich and powerful through massive carbon emissions (e.g., France, the United Kingdom, the United States) should have a greater obligation to address the resulting crises. Applied to PABS, it would require that governments hosting and supporting companies developing lucrative products carry greater obligations toward the cost of running the PABS system; share benefits or final medical products; and transfer technology to help countries worldwide develop their own capacities to innovate and manufacture vaccines during an emergency. For example, an annex could mandate that any company based in an OECD country that withdraws PABS material would be obligated to donate the resulting diagnostics, therapeutics, or vaccines to the WHO during a public health emergency or pandemic. Questions remain about how robust those donations would be, but the principle is that they should deliver highly significant lifesaving benefits to be equitably shared. Theoretically, this approach mirrors the PIP Framework, in which companies withdrawing influenza samples are required to pay half of the operating costs. In practice, however, the framework has fallen short. The PIP Framework Secretariat has struggled to secure payments from companies, with companies often disagreeing over how much is owed. Additionally, without another pandemic influenza to test the strength of the agreement during a public health emergency, corporate compliance with sharing mechanisms remains unknown. Even if these limitations did not characterize the PIP Framework, partially paying for operating expenses does not address the inequity in access to genetic data and pathogen samples that left less developed countries last in line for COVID-19 vaccines (and, before them, H1N1). Common but differentiated responsibilities would go further, addressing governments’ legitimate grievances regarding information sharing. It would make withdrawals of PABS material and resulting products more transparent, building trust across the board. Enforcement and Enduring Success A key implication of this approach is that the governing mechanism of the PABS must have real enforcement authority. The WHO Pandemic Agreement delegates its core governance responsibilities to a Conference of the Parties (COP)—a governing body composed of one representative from each participating government, similar to those established under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The proposed WHO Pandemic Agreement COP is charged with oversight functions but ultimately possesses no real authority to compel a government to take any action it does not wish to take. The text does not give the COP the ability to, for example, sanction a party that does not comply with either textual obligations or PABS provisions. In other words, there are no effective mechanisms in place to ensure compliance. Perhaps just as significant, establishing a meaningful enforcement mechanism within the PABS system would strengthen the WHO’s credibility and its ability to ensure compliance across global health governance. By setting a precedent for accountability, such a mechanism could enhance the organization’s authority not only within the Pandemic Agreement but also in enforcing the revised International Health Regulations and other frameworks for public health emergencies. Conclusion The PABS annex can—and should—be different. It should establish clear responsibilities for funding as well as for sharing the diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines that result from contributions to the system. The system, in turn, must include a dedicated body empowered to hold governments and the corporations they sponsor accountable for their responsibilities before, during, and after pandemics. Doing so would restore trust in the broader agreement, which was eroded as commitments were repeatedly diluted while parties scrambled to meet their own self-imposed deadlines during the Pandemic Agreement negotiations. A robust PABS Annex would cement a grand social bargain. Wealthier countries and their corporations would gain unimpeded access to scientific information essential for developing and manufacturing lifesaving medical products. As such, they would stand to gain considerable economic benefit. Yet that privilege must be matched with responsibility. The grand bargain must include not only the right to innovate, but also the duty to ensure that innovation serves all. As medical products are developed and produced through collective contributions, every person must have equal access. All human beings deserve an equitable chance to survive—to save their own life, the lives of their families, and the well-being of their communities. … Sam Halabi, JD, MPhil, is the Bette Jacobs Endowed Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Health and the Director of the Center for Transformational Health Law at Georgetown Law. He serves as the co-lead for the WHO’s Working Group on Regulatory Consideration on AI and Health’s training workstream. He earned his JD from Harvard, his MPhil from Oxford, and undergraduate degrees from Kansas State University. Lawrence Gostin, LLD (Hon.), JD, BA, is University Distinguished Professor and Founding Director and Timothy and Linda O’Neill Professor of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law. He is the author of Global Health Security: A Blueprint for the Future (Harvard University Press, 2021); Global Health Law (Harvard University Press, 2014); Public Health Law: Power, Duty, Restraint (University of California Press, 3rd ed., 2016); Public Health Law and Ethics: A Reader (University of California Press, 3rd ed., 2018); Law and the Health System (Foundation Press, 2014); Principles of Mental Health Law & Practice (Oxford University Press, 2010). He also directs the WHO Collaborating Center at Georgetown University. Image Credit: United States Mission Geneva, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Watch live: Trump holds roundtable with business leaders at White House
President Trump on Wednesday afternoon welcomed business leaders to the White House for a roundtable discussion. The event comes a day after Trump touted his economic agenda in Pennsylvania. It was…
RedFESP advances its 2026 regional agenda to strengthen the Essential Public Health Functions
Washington, D.C., December 3, 2025 — The Network on Essential Public Health Functions for strengthening stewardship and governance (RedFESP), established in September 2025 with the technical support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), held its second virtual meeting to advance the development of the 2026 work plan. Institutions from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay participated.
Capitol agenda: Johnson’s turn to deliver a health plan
House Republicans will huddle Wednesday morning to hammer out their options.
Trump offers farmers $12-billion bailout to offset pain from trade war : The NPR Politics Podcast
President Trump has announced a $12-billion bailout plan for farmers, designed to offset the impacts they have felt from a trade war with China. We discuss how this program fits into Trump’s broader economic policy agenda, and whether it detracts from his message that tariffs will be a boon for the country’s economy.This episode: national political correspondent Sarah McCammon, White House correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, and senior national political correspondent Mara Liasson.This podcast was produced by Casey Morell and Bria Suggs, and edited by Rachel Baye.Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.Listen to every episode of the NPR Politics Podcast sponsor-free, unlock access to bonus episodes with more from the NPR Politics team, and support public media when you sign up for The NPR Politics Podcast+ at plus.npr.org/politics.Please let us know what you think of our show and how we can make it better by filling out this quick survey. As a token of our appreciation, three respondents will be randomly selected to receive a $25 gift card.
Capitol agenda: What Trump told POLITICO about health care
The president said "I don't know" when asked whether he'll push Congress to extend enhanced Obamacare subsidies.
Capitol agenda: GOP struggles on affordability message
Republicans are divided over how to address growing cost-of-living concerns over health care, housing, student debt and more.
New judiciary chairman Willis focused on lightening load on West Virginia business owners
CHARLESTON, W.Va – New state Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Tom Willis is preparing for his second legislative session, armed with an agenda designed to make life easier on West Virginia business owners. Personal experience with the state’s regulations and requirements is motivating him to try and make a change. “I’ve spent a lot of time
Swing-district Republican sounds alarm over GOP’s affordability agenda: ‘Doing nothing is not an option’
In a wide-ranging interview with CNN’s Manu Raju for “Inside Politics Sunday,” Fitzpatrick leaned into areas where he broke sharply with his party’s leaders, including his desire to find a healthcare compromise, staunch commitment to defending Ukraine and past votes against advancing major pieces of President Donald Trump’s agenda.
Trump orders overhaul of U.S. vaccine schedules
Trump's order suggests he's not trying to distance himself from RFK Jr.'s vaccine agenda — at least for now.
Who Gets to Mourn? Rethinking Grief, Resistance and the Everyday Politics of Peace in Colombia
What does it mean to resist when there are no slogans, no marches, no chants, only grief? This piece argues that the Women, Peace and Security agenda—despite its historic contributions—has often reduced women’s political agency to visibility, voice, and institutional participation. A feminist lens invites us to look beyond this framing and recognise the everyday, intimate, and affective forms of resistance through which women remember the dead, survive violence, and hold broken communities together.
Arts and Entertainment Agenda, Dec. 5-12
Aspen Santa Fe Ballet ‘The Nutcracker,’ Dec. 5 Aspen Santa Fe Ballet returns in its 35th anniversary year to perform “The Nutcracker” between Dec. 5-7 at Aspen District Theater. The highly-anticipated performances will take place...
Watch live: House Democrats target Trump over health care, affordability
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee are holding a hearing Thursday morning on President Trump’s economic agenda: From rising health care pre…
Under Kennedy, America’s Health Department Is in the Business of Promoting Kennedy
Under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Department of Health and Human Services increasingly uses its social media channels to promote Kennedy himself and his agenda. Interviews with over 20 former and current employees provide a look inside an agency where personality and politics steer communications with the public.
It’s not just vaccines. How RFK Jr. is reshaping public health messaging
Under Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Department of Health and Human Services uses its social media channels to promote Kennedy himself and his agenda.
Trump announces more restrictions on legal immigration after DC shooting : The NPR Politics Podcast
The Trump administration has announced more restrictions on the country’s refugee and asylum programs after a shooting of two National Guard members last week in Washington, D.C., allegedly by an Afghan immigrant. How do these changes advance Trump’s immigration policy agenda and his vision of what it means to be an American?This episode: senior White House correspondent Tamara Keith, immigration policy correspondent Ximena Bustillo, and senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro.This podcast was produced by Casey Morell and Bria Suggs, and edited by Rachel Baye.Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.Listen to every episode of the NPR Politics Podcast sponsor-free, unlock access to bonus episodes with more from the NPR Politics team, and support public media when you sign up for The NPR Politics Podcast+ at plus.npr.org/politics.
Capitol agenda: The health care talks to watch
Many lawmakers now view Jan. 30 as the real deadline to figure out what to do about Affordable Care Act subsidies.
Why Republicans are sweating Tuesday’s special election in ‘Trump Country’
The surprisingly competitive race in Tennessee’s ruby-red 7th Congressional District is a high-profile test of voters’ attitudes about the president’s agenda.
Congress begins final session of 2025 with healthcare (and a dash of AI policy) on the docket
At the top of lawmakers' economic agenda is a promised vote on healthcare left over from the 43-day shutdown fight. Also being debated are two limited AI measures that have a last chance for action in 2025.
Capitol agenda: Health deal hinges on Trump
Capitol Hill factions are trying to figure out what the president wants and how to entice him to their side.
France’s business leaders scramble to shape far right’s agenda as election looms
The business community wants the far right to become more market-friendly, but there’s a long way to go.
Karl Rove on midterms: Republicans need health care agenda or they’ll be ‘in deep trouble’
GOP strategist Karl Rove said Republicans need to have a health care agenda ahead of the midterm elections or they’ll be in “deep trouble” with their voters. In an interview Saturday on Fox News’s …
Is MAHA influencing health policy? : Consider This from NPR
At the recent Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, summit - which was attended by the U.S. Secretary of Health and the Vice President - the agenda showed a shift toward alternative medicine, wellness and nutrition and away from conventional medication. Most of the speakers were not academic researchers or doctors. To discuss what happens when government guidance moves away from scientific consensus, Miles Parks speaks with Dr. Sandro Galea, a Distinguished Professor in Public Health, and Dean of the Washington University School of Public Health in St Louis, Missouri.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.This episode was produced by Avery Keatley and Jordan-Marie Smith. It was edited by Ahmad Damen. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.