PREVIEW: Bridging Global Health Security, Policy, and Sustainability: A Conversation with Dr. Zara Ahmed

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Advocating for effective public health policy requires a unique blend of scientific understanding and political acumen. Our guest shares insights from their career, emphasizing the importance of translating research into action amidst complex policy landscapes. 

Come back on Thursday, February 27 for the full conversation! 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
I know we have a lot to get into today, so let's jump
right in.
You've had an extensive careerin global health policy, working
with institutions such as theCDC and the Guttmacher Institute
.
What really drew you to thisfield and how has your
experience shaped your approachto advocacy and policy

(00:21):
development?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah, that's a great question.
So everything about my careerhas been a wonderful surprise.
Each new chapter is one I couldnever have anticipated or
guessed.
The short version is that mydad and his whole family are
doctors and my mom and her wholefamily are in business, and I
saw really clearly how differenttheir work was, the challenges

(00:43):
they face, and they kind ofspoke different work languages
and so even as a kid I kind ofended up translating between
them or thinking about thingsfrom different perspectives.
So after getting an undergraddegree in political science from
Brown, I decided to get acouple of master's degrees, one
in public health and one inpublic policy.
And I did that because publichealth people know how to design

(01:05):
and implement good programs,they understand evidence and
research, but they generallyhave no idea how the government
works and they don't know how toget their good ideas funded or
scaled up.
And, on the other hand, publicpolicy, they're the inverse.
They don't know the details ofany particular area really, but
they know the mechanics ofgovernment, they know how to
operate and get things throughthe system.

(01:26):
So I wanted to learn those twolanguages and be that bridge,
taking science-based ideas andturning them into effective
policy, and so later on, I got adoctorate that was focused on
public health leadership andmanagement, as well as an mba,
all of this with the goal ofbeing a more effective
collaborator and betterunderstanding how different
types of people and differenttypes of organizations operate.

(01:47):
So this bridging between groupsand interest is really what I
did for my 15-year career inpublic health, and it's also now
what I do in the climate space.
So I really love any job thathas essentially three
ingredients.
So first is smart, passionatescientists, the second is a
wicked policy problem, and thenthe third is the need to
translate science into action tosolve that policy problem.