At the Eighth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR2024) in Nagasaki, Japan, the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research unveiled the Alliance Alumni Network, a new initiative celebrating over 25 years of global collaboration and impact. The network connects individuals and organizations that have contributed to the Alliance’s mission, including current and former grantees, Secretariat staff, governance body members and fellowship participants.
The launch event brought together all four Secretariat leads of the Alliance, past and present, to share insights on its evolution. Prof. Sara Bennett, Director from 2006 to 2008, highlighted the Alliance’s enduring commitment to addressing core health systems challenges while expanding its scope to include pressing global issues such as climate change and social determinants of health. Dr. Abdul Ghaffar, Executive Director from 2010 to 2022, reflected on the progress in methods and approaches for health policy and systems research that had been achieved over the Alliance’s 25-year existence.
To commemorate the occasion, the Alliance honoured its past directors and Prof. Dame Anne Mills (the Alliance’s first Chair who opened the launch with a reflection on the origins of the Alliance), with wooden plaques featuring its logo. Dr Miguel González Block, the Alliance’s first Secretariat lead, explained the logo’s origins, noting how it symbolizes the transformative power of research in health systems. The off-horizontal square, he shared, represents how research challenges perspectives and catalyses change.
The network seeks to foster this spirit of progress by engaging the Alliance’s global community to share diverse perspectives and drive transformations in health systems as they respond to a range of crises. Through a dedicated LinkedIn group, members can exchange insights, highlight opportunities and promote relevant events.
In closing, Dr Kumanan Rasanathan, the current Alliance Executive Director, emphasized the importance of the Alliance’s broader community in its achievements, stating that the Alliance was far more than the small Secretariat based in Geneva. He invited all alumni and friends to join this community to continue to shape the future of health policy and systems research.