UKCDR and GloPID-R are pleased to announce our upcoming COVID CIRCLE virtual dialogue.

This event is free and open to the public.

This dialogue will contribute to a wider, forward-looking discussion among global research funders about the future directions for funding and research practices in epidemics and pandemics, with a particular focus on low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The event will explore the lessons learnt from funding research during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has, in turn, informed current thinking.

During this event, we will launch and discuss several key documents:

1. COVID CIRCLE’s updated report ‘funding and undertaking research in the first two years of the pandemic’, which provides insights and recommendations to research funders, using evidence on the research response across both funders and researchers funding and undertaking research across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)
2. Research prioritisation outputs from the GloPID-R LMIC working group, which highlight the lessons learnt from developing and applying research priorities during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on low-resource settings

The panel of global research funders includes:

• Professor Charles Wiysonge, MRC South Africa, GloPID-R Africa Regional Hub

• Dr Choong-Min Ryu, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, GloPID-R Asia Pacific Regional Hub

• Dr Jean Marie Habarugira, EDCTP

• Dr Josie Golding, Wellcome Trust

This dialogue will also represent an opportunity for global research funders to reflect on lessons learnt during the COVID-19 pandemic and shine a spotlight on related advancements in epidemic and pandemic preparedness.