Penelope Milsom

Transnational corporations negatively affect public health through various channels, leading to efforts that set behavioral standards and impose regulations to curb harm. Recently,  corporate scorecards,  such as the Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) and the Access to Nutrition Initiative’s Global Index (ATNI), have increasingly been used to encourage social responsibility. In this viewpoint published in @TheLancet titled "Holding powerful corporations accountable for their health impacts: are corporate rankings effective?”, authors David McCoy (@dcmccoy11), Els Torreele (@ElsTorreele) and Penelope Milsom (@milsompenelope) argued that these scorecards are flawed and risk reinforcing the dominance of large pharmaceutical and food companies, ultimately undermining public accountability and equitable access to healthy foods, medicines, and vaccines. While at face value, scorecards such as ATMI and ATNI appear to incentivise better corporate practices, a United Nations University International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH) analysis has exposed significant weaknesses in their indicators, methods, and theory of change. Read the full viewpoint and learn more here: go.unu.edu/sfpzI #UNUIIGH #UNU #GlobalHealth #HealthGovernance  #CorporateAccountability #FoodSystems #AccessToMedicine

📢 Tomorrow | 𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿: 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵: 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 & 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 📅 𝟭𝟵 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 | ⏰𝟭𝟮:𝟬𝟬–𝟭𝟯:𝟯𝟬 𝗨𝗧𝗖 | 𝟮𝟬:𝟬𝟬–𝟮𝟭:𝟯𝟬 𝗠𝗬𝗧 Join UNU-IIGH and global experts for a critical discussion on scorecards and rankings like the Access to Medicines Index and Access to Nutrition Initiative, and what truly effective corporate accountability should look like in the fight for health equity. 🔍 𝗜𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹: • Expose the limitations and risks of voluntary corporate scorecards (e.g., AtMI, AtNI). • Highlight harmful corporate behaviors often overlooked by rankings. • Present principles for effective corporate monitoring and accountability. • Foster dialogue on systemic reforms needed to regulate corporate power in health governance. ------------------------------ 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆: • Penelope Milsom (@milsompenelope), Honorary Research Fellow, UNU-IIGH) 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀: • Judy Gearhart (@Judy_Gearhart), Accountability Research Center, American University • Els Torreele (@ElsTorreele), Health Equity & Economic Justice Advocate • John Thomi (@JohnThomi), Policy Officer, Tax Justice Network Africa 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗮: go.unu.edu/Q4YcR #UNU #UNUIIGH #GlobalHealth #Accountability #PublicHealth

Fantastic analysis by @BenjaminM_Wood on the political economy system of #UPFs showing feedback loops holding our high UPF consumption in place. Helps to explain the huge policy inertia preventing serious action.

G20 leaders all agree that the super-rich should pay their fair share. This is a major historic shift.

I just signed - will you join me? Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles must be protected by all of us. It is essential for Māori rights and health and is what allows us Pākehā and Tauiwi to call Aotearoa home. our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/kati… via @actionstation

COMMENT: No silver bullets, no shortcuts: confronting the commercial determinants of the climate crisis @BenjaminM_Wood @milsompenelope @SharonFrielOz thelancet.com/journals/lanpl…

📢 Save the Date! Join us for the Report Launch Webinar on Corporate Accountability in Global Health Governance, featuring a case study of the Access to Medicine Index. 🔍What to expect: A critical exploration of the "league table" as an accountability mechanism to improve access to medicines, and why such mechanisms might paradoxically weaken efforts to regulate pharmaceutical companies. 🗓 Date: 17 October 2024 🕒 Time: 3-4 PM MYT Stay tuned for more details on how to join us for this discussion! #UNU #GlobalHealth #PowerAndAccountability #HealthGovernance #AccessToMedicine #CorporateAccountability

There are no words.

One thing we've learned from studying genocides is that language like this often precedes the mass killing. Otherize, dehumanize, and fearmonger about the target group. This is well documented in Rwanda in 90s and in the 1930s Nazi regime. This is historical fact, not hyperbole.

@maxine_ronald Wow. 😳

Dr Jason Gurney leading authority 4 health inequity AoNZ. Health care is already race based - it is just that it is Pakeha race based. As soon as we try to address issues that impact Māori and Pacifica people more - we are being "racist". The hypocrisy is killing our people.

A great article on how NZ has aligned with Big Formula against mums & babies. Shows the huge power of companies like Fonterra or Danone, as formula is ~15% of NZ exports. NZ rivers are turning into 🐄 sewers as a result but hey $ trump people. #Auspol @DrMikeJoy @HelenClarkNZ

Siding with big business over our childrens' health and wellbeing (again), it's unacceptable.

New paper shows that the scale of corporate profit repatriation out of the global South is... massive. "Between 2005 and 2020, transnational corporations repatriated an annual average of one trillion USD." onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.11…

Profit repatriation is theft. Profits made in global South host countries, which are produced from local labour and resources, should be reinvested to improve national development. Achieving this must be a core objective of Southern industrial policy.

Join our @WHO 🇺🇳 31 July 14 – 16 CEST webinar on: “Community Engagement for Addressing Commercial Determinants of Health’’ Chaired by Prof Freudenberg and co-moderated be me, we'll dive deep on the role for communities in addressing business practices and power and the levers communities have with advocacy, accountability, monitoring, etc. 📝 who.zoom.us/meeting/regist… #CDoH

#GlobalHealth peeps, do join @unuiigh's @EmmaRhule in a discussion with @YokeLing15, @SuerieMoon, @sharifasekalala, & @PeterASinger later today, on power and accountability in an era of complex multilateralism. 🔗 go.unu.edu/wHRP8

Looking forward to this webinar next week- come join us!

Congrats to Savannah Dysard @savdysard for presenting research on gender transformative approaches to global-level food systems policies at the @WPHNA @Wphncongress today! A brilliant @LSHTM_Nutrition alum, showcasing an excellent summer project! 🤩 @milsompenelope @helenwalls

Definitely worth a read regardless of what area of global health (or public health) you might focus on.