Ambassador-at-Large John Nkengasong, who will lead the State Department's Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy, speaks to the press about the new agency. He told NPR that the pandemic "taught us three key lessons. We are collectively more connected than we thought. We are more vulnerable than we thought. And we have [vast] inequities" when it comes to disease threats. Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images hide caption
The World Health Organization led this measles vaccination campaign in India in 1974 — reflecting its mission "to promote and protect the health of all peoples." Nik Wheeler/Sygma via Getty Images hide caption
Joyce Cohen Lashof was the first female dean of UC Berkeley's School of Public Health and a lifelong fighter for social justice. UC Berkeley School of Public Health hide caption
Aspergillus fumigatus can infect the lungs, causing pneumonia-like symptoms that can progress into more severe sickness. BSIP/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images hide caption
People protest during a rally calling for more government action to combat the spread of monkeypox at Foley Square on July 21, 2022 in New York City. Jeenah Moon/Getty Images hide caption
Aerial view of the Beckton Sewage Treatment Works in London. Between February and May, U.K. scientists found several samples containing closely related versions of the polio virus in wastewater at the plant. mwmbwls/Flickr hide caption
Female community health care workers protest in New Delhi, India, in August 2020. The women are part of a government program called Accredited Social Health Activists — and are demanding higher pay and better working conditions. In May, the program won an award from the World Health Organization. T. Narayan/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption
USAID Administrator Samantha Power delivered a speech on her "new vision" for the agency on Nov. 4 at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
In his new book for young teenagers, Charles Kenny points out signs of global progress, including the growing number of kids in school. Above: The Oloo Education Center aims to provide an education to kids in Kibera, a poor community in Nairobi, Kenya. When you type "Kibera" into the Uber app, it comes up as "Kibera slum." Julia Gunther for NPR hide caption
Abraar Karan spent time in rural India in 2008 while working for Unite for Sight, a nonprofit group that provides eye care. Above: He interviews a woman about the challenge of living from severe cataracts. Daniel Carvalho hide caption
Dr. Eugene Richardson in a helicopter during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, where he worked as a clinical lead for Partner in Health's response to the outbreak. He is the author of the new book Epidemic Illusions: On the Coloniality of Global Public Health. Katie Barron hide caption
President Biden signs executive actions hours after his inauguration on Wednesday. He is expected to reverse several Trump-era policies. Evan Vucci/AP hide caption