December 2006

Wendy Baldwin, John W. Townsend to Lead New Council Programs

In their appointments, Council president Peter Donaldson noted that “We are addressing three of the most consequential issues of our time, and we are aligning our resources programmatically to ensure that our research results are translated into practice and that promising models for change are scaled up. Wendy and John are ideally suited to lead these efforts.”

Wendy Baldwin	John Townsend

Donaldson applauded Baldwin and Townsend for their willingness to tackle the challenges ahead of them: “Both Wendy and John are well-known and highly respected figures in the fields of population and health, and both enjoy excellent relations with collaborators around the world. Both have the experience, ability, and enthusiasm to shape these important programs.” Donaldson added that the search for the director of the third program, HIV and AIDS, is in its final stages. Ian Askew, a Council senior program associate, was named to replace Townsend as director of Frontiers.

As director of Poverty, Gender, and Youth, Baldwin will work with the Council’s regional directors and professional staff on program development and fundraising, and will represent the Council to governments, donor agencies, and population and development organizations.

“I am very pleased to join the excellent researchers at the Council,” she says, “people who care about the evidence and care about finding ways to use evidence to improve people’s lives. The largest group of adolescents the world has ever seen is now coming of age. The introduction to adulthood for many adolescents in developing countries is marked by sexual coercion, unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted disease (including HIV/AIDS), and gender inequities. For far too many young people, poverty will greatly restrict their life choices. I hope to contribute to the expanding body of evidence about adolescents’ experiences and to the identification of policies and programs to improve the future of generations of young people.“ 

In his new role, Townsend will head a multidisciplinary staff of biomedical, public health, and social science researchers who conduct research to improve sexual and reproductive health, especially among disadvantaged populations in developing countries, through the development and introduction of appropriate technologies, the formulation of evidence-based policies, studies of the social context of reproductive health, and innovations in service delivery. Townsend regularly represents the Council to governments, donor agencies, and population and development organizations.

“My priority for the coming year,” Townsend says, “will be to bring focus, public presence, and enthusiasm to the range of reproductive health issues and partnerships that the Council cares about. In listening to our local partners and linking our research on human reproduction to their needs and aspirations, staff Council-wide can be more effective in shaping policies and programs to improve the health and well-being of women and men in developing countries.”

Both directors have extensive experience in their respective areas. Baldwin joined the staff of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 1973, eventually serving in the Office of the Director in 1993 as Deputy Director for Extramural Research, one of the most influential positions in American health research. The extramural program represents more than 80 percent of the NIH budget, awarding nearly $20 billion in more than 40,000 awards.

Townsend began his career with the Population Council in 1984 as its country director for Colombia before moving to Mexico City in 1985 to direct the Council’s reproductive health operations research program in Latin America and the Caribbean. From 1990 to 1993 he was the Council’s regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean, and from 1993 to 1998, while based in New Delhi, he directed its reproductive health operations research program in Asia and the Near East.

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