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Global Health Matters

September - October, 2009  |  Volume 8, Issue 5

 

What is CUGH?

The Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH) sprang from an idea conceived by former Fogarty Director Dr. Gerald Keusch. Last year, it held its first organizing meeting among 20 members at the University of California, San Francisco.

There are 58 members now, and the four criteria for membership are:

• A well-established global health program
• An interdisciplinary program nearly always involving more than one school
• Activities encompassing education and training, research and service
• A well-established and functioning international partnership

Dr. Haile T. Debas of the University of California, San Francisco, chairman of the founding board of directors, outlines some of the Consortium's first priorities:

• Defining what is meant by global health education in terms of curricula and competencies
• Collaborating among members in research, training and service
• Developing a common "platform" for members to facilitate their work overseas
• Developing policy and advocacy in support of global health
• Creating international partnerships for human and institutional capacity building

"I am hopeful that the Consortium will ensure that we catch the crest of the wave of excitement and idealism in our students and faculty to make universities a transforming force in global health," Debas says.