As the number of positive COVID-19 cases and deaths climb in Bangladesh, Sajeda Amin—a researcher and demographer known for her work on child marriage—shared her perspective in a commentary published in Netra News on the disproportionate burden of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic on Bangladeshi women and girls. In the piece, she calls on the world to recognize that women and girls are especially vulnerable to this pandemic and the conditions of these unprecedented times, but also have the potential to help support effective response strategies.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to reshape our lives and health systems, Council Program Director Thoai Ngo and President of Ibis Reproductive Health Kelly Blanchard share their views on abortion care during these unprecedented times in an opinion piece for Thomson Reuters Foundation News. Citing two new evidence reviews on women’s ability to manage abortions with safe and effective medicines during early pregnancy, the authors support self-managed abortion during – and after – this pandemic as a method that puts less strain on health systems and allows women access who might be hampered by isolation and distancing mandated in response to COVID-19.

The Population Council has been responding to the COVID-19 pandemic over the last couple of weeks with action to ensure that our staff and in turn their families, and the communities where we work, stay safe and well. 

The Population Council is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to the Board of Trustees. Drawing on backgrounds in finance, organizational excellence and health systems strengthening, together these newest members bring decades of global health finance and innovation experience.

The Population Council’s Girl Innovation Research and Learning Center (GIRL Center) published two new studies on global girls’ education, which challenge the long-held assumption that simply enrolling girls in school is sufficient to improve their health and wellbeing over the course of their lives.

The Population Council received a significant gift this year in honor of Dr Elizabeth “Betty” Price, a passionate advocate for social and environmental justice, women’s reproductive rights, and equal opportunities for all to reach their potential.  

The Population Council is pleased to welcome Professor David Serwadda to the Board of Trustees. With over 30 years of clinical and community research experience in HIV and related fields, including randomized trials of HIV prevention, HIV epidemiology and implementation and social/behavioral sciences, Serwadda is currently a Professor in the Department of Disease Control and Environmental Health, School of Public Health at Makerere University in Uganda.

The life and legacy of Dr. C. Wayne Bardin, former director of the Population Council’s Center for Biomedical Research (CBR) and chairman of the International Committee for Contraception Research at the Population Council, was honored at the New York Times. James Sailer, CBR’s current Executive Director, spoke about Dr. Bardin’s groundbreaking work.

The 1994 International Conference on Population Development (ICPD) held in Cairo, saw 179 governments adopt an ambitious program of action to achieve comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights for all.  The Cairo Conference represented an important and pivotal shift in our approach to population and development. It transformed the world’s thinking from setting demographic targets toward employing people-centered approaches to sexual and reproductive health, grounded in human rights, equality, and dignity for all.