Ideas

The latest stories, research, and news from across the foundation

Female scientists using a machine to test samples in a laboratory.

Supporting locally led innovation in global health and development

During the pandemic, our foundation has intensified its commitment to investing in researchers and innovation ecosystems in low- and middle-income countries. This includes the next generation of Grand Challenges grants: The Global Call to Action.

By Kedest Tesfagiorgis Deputy Director, Global Partnerships and Grand Challenges, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A nurse distributes vials of the polio vaccine from a cold box to vaccinators during a polio vaccination campaign in the village of Nakera on the Niger/Nigeria border, Niger.

Getting medical supplies where they’re needed most

By Yusuf Yusufari and Julie Frye

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Latest updates

A nurse prepares a syringe of the injectable polio vaccine at the Philippe Maguilen Senghor Hospital in Dakar, Senegal.

Amid surging demand for syringes, a new investment supports long-term supply on the African continent

By Surabhi Rajaram Program Officer, Global Delivery Programs

A farmer sifts through corn harvested from hybrid drought-resistant maize seed on her smallholder farm in Kenya.

Smallholder farming is a proven path out of poverty, but climate change is changing the rules

By Enock Chikava Interim Director, Agricultural Development, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A lab technician examines a pill. Seksan Mongkhonkhamsao via Getty Images

How a new drug for COVID-19 could help improve treatment equity

By Brad Wilken Deputy Director, Global Health

A government employee enrolls a campaign worker into the worker database in Kongo Central, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The future of global health: polio and mobile money

By Andrew Stein Senior Program Officer, Polio

A mother of two, balancing paid and unpaid work, plays with her children at their home in New Delhi, India.

An extraordinary response at an extraordinary moment

By Gargee Ghosh President, Global Policy & Advocacy, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A miner receives a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at Anglo American Platinum Ltd.'s Tumela mine in Amandelbult, South Africa. South African companies are playing a crucial role in helping the government counter the ravages of the pandemic among remote communities.

Global action to end the COVID-19 crisis

By Gargee Ghosh President, Global Policy & Advocacy, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Students in pre-calculus class at Granby High School, Norfolk, Virginia

How these Grand Challenge winners are helping to make every student a “math person”

By Bob Hughes Director, K-12 Education, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Wendy Wei (right, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) discusses China's "1-3-7" approach with scientists and public health experts, in an effort to apply the approach in Tanzania.

China's successful elimination of malaria, and its global impact

By Wendy Wei Senior Program Officer, Malaria

Detail view of the "campus heart" courtyard on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Seattle campus in Seattle

Work in progress: An update on our DEI journey

By Mark Suzman Chief Executive Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

The waterless, solar-powered Eco-San Toilet, designed at Caltech, is pilot tested at an elementary school in Jiangsu Province, China.

The future of sanitation: 10 years of reinventing the toilet

By Doulaye Kone Deputy Director, Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A laboratory at Afrigen Biologics & Vaccines in Cape Town, South Africa, which is partnering with the World Health Organization and the Biovac Institute to establish an mRNA technology transfer hub in Cape Town.

Geographically distributed manufacturing capacity is needed for improved global health security

By Anita Zaidi President, Gender Equality and Director, Vaccine Development and Surveillance, and Director, EDD, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A drive-through coronavirus testing facility in Pretoria, South Africa.

As COVID-19 cases surge, African institutions lead response efforts

By Cheikh Oumar Seydi Director, Africa, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

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