Global Health Matters

“Trailblazers with Garry" is a series from Global Health Matters, where host Garry Aslanyan sits down with trailblazers — thinkers, leaders and influencers shaping the future of global health — for short face-to-face conversations, available in both audio and video formats. It’s a chance to get to know the people behind the work and hear their perspectives on the current global health landscape.
For this Trailblazer episode, Garry met up with Ntobeko Ntusi in Cape Town, South Africa. Ntobeko has been president and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council since 2024 after serving as Head of the Department of Medicine at the University of Cape Town. He is deeply passionate about seeing South Africa and the African continent more broadly emerge as a leader in research and innovation. In this conversation, they explore the mentors who have shaped his journey, his vision for the role of science in strengthening African health systems, and how global health can recalibrate power symmetries to advance greater equity.
Related episode documents, transcripts and other information can be found on our website.

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Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Global Health Matters podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of TDR or the World Health Organization.  

All content © 2026 Global Health Matters.  
Hi there, it's Garry. Let me let you on a bit of a secret. We're offering something new at the Global Health Matters and it's called the Insight Track. And Insight track is about context, clarity, and foresight from people who actually know the terrain. So in each episode, I'm joined by two brilliant recurrent voices. Voices you heard here on Global Health matters, Catherine Kyobutungi who brings the evidence and real-world insight from the front lines of health resear

Across the global health landscape, governments are facing mounting debt, development assistance is under pressure and the gap between ambition and available resources continues to widen. So how do we mobilize resources differently? What does innovative finance look like? And which approaches are truly scalable, equitable and fit for today's realities? To explore these questions, host Garry Aslanyan speaks with two leaders who have spent decades working at the intersection of health, finance and global cooperation. Christoph Benn is Director for Global Health Diplomacy at Joep Lange Institute. He's a physician who has played a central role in shaping innovative financing mechanisms in global health. And joining him is Patrik Silborn, Senior Advisor at UNICEF Afghanistan, who specializes in development financing in fragile and crisis-affected settings and has led large-scale efforts to mobilize resources beyond traditional aid.
Related episode documents, transcripts and other information can be found on our website.

Subscribe to the Global Health Matters podcast newsletter. 
 
Follow us for updates:
@TDRnews on X
TDR on LinkedIn
@ghm_podcast on Instagram
@ghm-podcast.bsky.social on Bluesky
 
Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Global Health Matters podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of TDR or the World Health Organization.  

All content © 2026 Global Health Matters.  
Hi there, it's Garry. Let me let you on a bit of a secret. We're offering something new at the Global Health Matters and it's called the Insight Track. And Insight track is about context, clarity, and foresight from people who actually know the terrain. So in each episode, I'm joined by two brilliant recurrent voices. Voices you heard here on Global Health matters, Catherine Kyobutungi who brings the evidence and real-world insight from the front lines of health resear

"Trailblazers with Garry" is a series from Global Health Matters, where host Garry Aslanyan sits down with trailblazers — thinkers, leaders and influencers shaping the future of global health — for short face-to-face conversations, available in both audio and video formats. It’s a chance to get to know the people behind the work and hear their perspectives on the current global health landscape.
For this episode, Garry sat down with Axel Pries during the World Health Summit in Berlin in October 2025. Axel is the President of the World Health Summit, based in Germany. He is a medical doctor by training and a professor of physiology, with a long career spanning research, academia and leadership. Together, they explore how the World Health Summit is working to transcend silos in global health, the shared values needed in a changing world and why good communication is essential in shaping the global health narrative of the future.

Related episode documents, transcripts and other information can be found on our website.

Subscribe to the Global Health Matters podcast newsletter. 
 
Follow us for updates:
@TDRnews on X
TDR on LinkedIn
@ghm_podcast on Instagram
@ghm-podcast.bsky.social on Bluesky
 
Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Global Health Matters podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of TDR or the World Health Organization.  

All content © 2026 Global Health Matters.

Brain health influences whether people can live productive and meaningful lives and whether the economies of countries can thrive. In this episode, host Garry Aslanyan is joined by two pioneers who advocate not only for brain health, but also for brain capital and the brain economy. George Vredenburg is the founding chairman of the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative, a global public-private initiative focusing on linking and scaling Alzheimer's and brain health research and delivery systems worldwide. Joining him is Rajinder Dhamija, distinguished neurologist, Professor of neurology and Director at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences in New Delhi.
Related episode documents, transcripts and other information can be found on our website.

Subscribe to the Global Health Matters podcast newsletter. 
 
Follow us for updates:
@TDRnews on X
TDR on LinkedIn
@ghm_podcast on Instagram
@ghm-podcast.bsky.social on Bluesky
 
Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Global Health Matters podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of TDR or the World Health Organization.  

All content © 2025 Global Health Matters.

“Trailblazers with Garry" is a series from Global Health Matters, where host Garry Aslanyan sits down with trailblazers — thinkers, leaders, and influencers shaping the future of global health — for short face-to-face conversations, available in both audio and video formats. It’s a chance to get to know the people behind the work and hear their perspectives on the current global health landscape.
 For this episode, Garry visited Professor John Gyapong at the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) in Accra, Ghana. Since taking up the role of Secretary General of ARUA in 2024, John has been passionately leading efforts to strengthen Pan-African research collaborations. Early in his career, and at a time when global attention was fixed on malaria, John chose instead to focus on neglected tropical diseases. Today, as a leader and educator, he remains deeply committed to Africans developing solutions for Africa and nurturing the next generation of research scientists. 

Related episode documents, transcripts and other information can be found on our website.

Subscribe to the Global Health Matters podcast newsletter. 
 
Follow us for updates:
@TDRnews on X
TDR on LinkedIn
@ghm_podcast on Instagram
@ghm-podcast.bsky.social on Bluesky
 
Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Global Health Matters podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of TDR or the World Health Organization.  

All content © 2026 Global Health Matters.