SciDev.Net

AORTIC aims to improve cancer research, control and prevention in Africa. The organisation runs research projects on cervical cancer screening, hosts biannual conferences and publishes a monthly newsletter, in English and French, with news and commentary on cancer-related activities around Africa as well as a list of upcoming events. AORTIC's website offers links to other organisations working on cancer in Africa, lists training opportunities for scientists and health workers, and provides free access to relevant training manuals, scientific articles, books and presentations.

APUA is a non-profit organisation that aims to promote appropriate antimicrobial use worldwide. It does so through antimicrobial resistance research, education, capacity building and advocacy at the global (it has 60 chapters in various countries) and grassroots levels. The website’s information is pitched both at patients and healthcare practitioners and researchers. It features upcoming meetings and conferences, and a detailed list of publications.

The Center engages in advocacy on public issues such as nutrition, food safety and health, of which antibiotic resistance is a part. The site tackles the overuse of antibiotics in livestock, including animals' treatment with antibiotics also used by humans.

It also has information directed at the general public — such as advice on when antibiotics are necessary, which common illnesses are caused by bacteria and which by viruses; and also tells people they shouldn’t demand antibiotics from their doctor. 

The health gateway of the Climate Institute, which aims to help policymakers tackle climate change, has detailed notes on the resurgence of infectious diseases through global warming. These include vector-borne diseases spread through mosquitoes, ticks, triatomine bugs, sandflies and blackflies. It also looks at rodent-borne diseases, which are also set to increase as the climate changes — increased heavy rainfall can drive rodents out of their burrows and climate change is set to alter human migration patterns which could bring people into closer contact with rodents.

COHRED is a nongovernmental organisation that supports developing countries' use of health research to improve their health systems and advance development. It does this through advocacy, technical support, research and knowledge sharing.

The COHRED website lists current programmes and initiatives and provides links to publications including reports, manuals, working papers, presentations and policy papers. Information on how to get involved is also available for policymakers, donors, civil society organisations and media, among others.

COHRED is a nongovernmental organisation that supports developing countries' use of health research to improve their health systems and advance development. It does this through advocacy, technical support, research and knowledge sharing.

The COHRED website lists current programmes and initiatives and provides links to publications including reports, manuals, working papers, presentations and policy papers. Information on how to get involved is also available for policymakers, donors, civil society organisations and media, among others.

The Global Forum for Health Research provides evidence, tools and discussion forums for decision-makers in research funding and policy to improve the health of the poor. Although it covers issues for both infectious and non-communicable diseases, the agency recognises that mental health problems are severely neglected in developing countries. As well as links to various publications and reports, the website also hosts RealHealthNews, which aims to share news on research and interventions that can improve the health of those in developing countries.

The GHF's mission is to document the impact of climate change on humans, much of which is health-related. The website expands on the forum's key goal to raise awareness of "climate injustice", by which it means that the world's poor who cause "less than 1 per cent of global emissions, suffer 99 per cent of the casualties". The GHF achieves this goal through advocacy, especially at major climate change conferences. The organisation also works with public and private partners on key projects, including Weather Info For All, which seeks to provide reliable weather information to vulnerable communities affected by climate change.

This partnership of government and non-government organisations, researchers, international bodies and the private sector has a much-called for goal: to increase cooperation between organisations involved different sectors such as health, climate, humanitarian assistance, ecosystems, research and operational services.

The partners collaborate on regional projects to increase capacity within the medical and environmental science communities; use rural communication networks to provide information to remote communities; and enhance the capacity of public-health services to predict and respond quickly to cholera, malaria, meningitis and other climate-sensitive diseases.

The INCTR is dedicated to helping build capacity for cancer treatment and research in countries in which such capacity is limited. The network, which has support from the US National Cancer Institute, aims to build capacity for cancer treatment and research in countries with limited resources through long-term collaborative projects coupled to training and educational programmes. It also seeks to promote international collaboration on cancer control between developed and developing countries. The INCTR is located at the Institut Pasteur in Brussels but also has branches in the US, France, Brazil, Egypt and Nepal and offices in the UK, India and Tanzania. The website contains details of the network's activities in various countries.

This organisation is a coalition of health, environmental, consumer, sustainable agriculture and other advocacy groups, working to end antibiotic misuse. The website has several background articles on antibiotic resistance, as well as a series of factsheets on how resistance can be particularly dangerous to vulnerable populations, such as those affected by HIV/AIDS or diabetes.

It has a useful archive of documents and reports on a variety of issues such as gene transfer, food contamination and animal husbandry.

ReAct (Action on Antibiotic Resistance) is a coalition that links a range of individuals, organisations and networks around the world taking concerted action to respond to antibiotic resistance. The organisation campaigns for the appropriate use of antibiotics, and for improved hygiene in hospitals to ensure better infection control.

The organisation produces regular publications, often aimed at policymakers, that analyse the different aspects of antibiotic resistance. [ReAct funds this Spotlight]