Learn more about the many people and communities who are making an impact in health around the world. Below is a selection of highlights. For a full list, view all stories.
When Melissa Danielson, MS, passed away on June 20, 2024, she left more than the profound impact she had on public health statistics and her passionate advocacy for child development—she left a legacy of kindness and giving, passion for connection and love of life.
In late August 2025, a gravely ill woman arrived at a hospital in a remote region of Kasai province in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), suffering from fever, vomiting and multi-organ failure. By September 4, 2025, officials in DRC declared an Ebola outbreak.
New parents spend much of their time staunchly attuned to every smile or plaintive cry from their newborn. Equally important to a baby's early development, however, is their own relationship to sound.
In July 2024, the Vermont collaborative was forced to put many of their long-term plans on hold when the Northeast Kingdom was battered by two historic, back-to-back rainstorms that caused widespread flooding. Roads and bridges were destroyed, and residents faced catastrophic damage to their homes and property—some washed away completely.
For public health agencies across the country, making communities healthier requires access to reliable and updated data. Yet in many public health departments, antiquated data systems, lack of access to data storage and management systems and limited staff can make accessing vital data difficult.
Brigid's Path is one of only five newborn recovery centers in the United States. With funding, it can serve as a model for other states to care for mothers and babies impacted by the opioid epidemic.
On 400 acres of scenic farmland in Fayetteville, Georgia, there is an inspiring organization dedicated to serving youth and veterans called Camp Southern Ground. Founded by GRAMMY award-winning artist Zac Brown, Camp Southern Ground offers residential summer camp experience for kids aged 7 to 17, and workforce and wellness transition programs to help veterans transition to civilian life after military service.
While beautiful, the vast evergreen forests that cover rural northwest Montana pose an increasingly common health hazard: destructive wildfires. An insect called a Douglas-fir beetle is killing these trees–perfect fuel for summer fires. Through a CDC Foundation project, local residents can save their trees by using a safe chemical that mimics a pheromone that repels these destructive insects.
Joanna Buffington kept going to school because she loved learning—and, in her words, because she didn’t know what she wanted to be when she grew up. She discovered a passion for science while an undergraduate at Wesleyan, but it wasn't until graduate school at Tufts that she decided to continue on to a medical education, rather than work in labs that conducted experiments on animals.
When Melissa Danielson, MS, passed away on June 20, 2024, she left more than the profound impact she had on public health statistics and her passionate advocacy for child development—she left a legacy of kindness and giving, passion for connection and love of life.
The career of F. Marc LaForce, MD began in1965 with an assignment to the United States Public Health Service at the Communicable Disease Center—now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—in Atlanta, GA. Dr. LaForce’s public health career has spanned multiple continents and changed countless lives.
