Global Risk Governance in Health

As globalization continues to increase interdependence, risk transcends national borders, causing major challenges in risk governance. This is particularly well illustrated in the health sector. Epidemics and pandemics know no borders and are often characterized by a high level of uncertainty regarding the causality of risk and its potential, social and economic consequences. How these risks are addressed at the international level and what role international organizations take in facing them lie at the heart of the book. The analysis of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the avian influenza (H5N1) and the (A)H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009 shows the emergence of global risk governance processes and the key role that multilateral institutions, in particular the World Health Organization (WHO), play within them.

Nathalie Brender is Professor of Risk Management and Corporate Finance at the Haute ecole de gestion de Geneve, University of Applied Sciences Western Switzerland. She also holds a PhD in international relations and is currently researching risk governance in health with a focus on cost-effectiveness analysis. Her past professional experience includes managing business risk consulting and auditing, as well as financial reporting in the private sector.