Global health. The current scenario and future perspectives

63 Are our universities taking on this challenge with the necessary conviction and urgency? To some extent, yes, but it is evident that more is needed, and for that, the commitment and collaborative work of their communities, from leadership entities to basic units, are essential. Where does the academia stand in this scenario? It is a difficult question to answer, but important and necessary to address. The opportunities provided by congresses, seminars, faculty meetings and development plans, along with fruitful national and international exchanges, are privileged spaces to tackle this challenge. To open a space for reflection, we will mention just three areas to consider in an innovative reform of every School/Institute of Public Health in the Latin American region. Undoubtedly, there are more: 1. Robust academic bodies that possess high academic degrees and schedules that allow sustainable teaching, research and engagement with the community are indispensable. As this is not easy, development plans should prioritize it in the short and medium term. 2. Academic institutions, particularly Schools and Institutes of Public Health, are privileged spaces to proactively work with diverse actors, including governments, civil organizations and international organizations, because of their identity and the nature of their work. In other words, they must contribute with new knowledge and innovative proposals to improve the health situation of the population in our countries. 3. Strengthening interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary work both within and outside our units is crucial in these times, and achieving it requires a panoramic vision of the problems to be addressed and their possible solutions, as well as the training to be provided and the research to be conducted. Future Perspectives After this synoptic view of the role of the academia in Global Health, it is worth asking about the challenges in terms of policies, programs, research and innovation and human resources training in the new social, political and economic reality that our countries have faced in the last two decades of this century. The challenges are significant, as are the opportunities, so they need to be addressed with a future-oriented vision (Solimano & Valdivia, 2020). Without aiming to be exhaustive or prescriptive in an article like this, we venture to outline a set of global areas that need to be considered in the present and near future: