Bold Ideas with Big Impact®
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Red, Yellow, Green: The Wristband System Revolutionising Maternal Care in Ghana
The most dangerous day of a woman’s life is the day she gives birth. When a pregnant mother or her newborn are in distress, minutes matter. Nearly 300,000 women die each year from pregnancy or childbirth-related causes, mostly in low-and middle-income countries. In many hospitals, pregnant women with serious but treatable conditions may wait in […]

Sustainable community-based mental health support in Uganda: Reflections from a Site Visit to StrongMinds
By Brittney Dudar, Portfolio Manager at Grand Challenges Canada One of my favourite parts of my work at Grand Challenges Canada is the opportunity to engage with innovators firsthand. While working remotely in Kampala, Uganda, I recently spent a day with the StrongMinds team, a nonprofit organization dedicated to treating depression through group interpersonal therapy […]
The Lancet Commentary Highlights Global Climate and Health Survey to Address Urgent Health Impacts of Climate Crisis
Toronto, Canada, January 22, 2025 – A newly published comment* in The Lancet Global Health, titled The climate crisis and human health: identifying grand challenges through participatory research, emphasizes the urgent need for innovative, community-driven solutions to address the profound health impacts of the climate crisis. Authored by a team of experts from Grand Challenges […]

Grand Challenges Canada’s Play Learn Thrive Funding Call Seeks Bold Ideas to Support Children in Crisis Settings
— Play Learn Thrive’s first funding call seeks solutions to strengthen children’s development and education in crisis settings, focusing on unserved and underserved children and caregivers— Toronto, Canada, January 21, 2025 — Grand Challenges Canada, with funding from the LEGO Foundation, is excited to announce the launch of the first Request for Proposals (RFP) for Play […]

New Global Survey Seeks Insights on Climate and Health
—Grand Challenges Canada, Science for Africa Foundation, Global Grand Challenges Network, and Geneva Learning Foundation launch global survey to collect insights on climate and health— Toronto, Canada – January 15, 2025 – Grand Challenges Canada (GCC), in partnership with the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation), the Global Grand Challenges Network, and The Geneva Learning […]

Kybele’s Obstetric Triage Program Wins Ghana Health Service Excellence Award
Kybele, a GCC-supported innovation that aims to make childbirth safe and supported for every woman and newborn, has been honoured with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) Excellence Award for its Obstetric Triage Implementation Package (OTIP). The award highlights Kybele’s important contributions to improving maternal and neonatal care in Ghana, where its OTIP program has significantly […]

Recapping 2024 with Being
As we step into 2025, we reflect on the highlights of 2024, revisiting impactful milestones and meaningful moments. We extend our sincere thanks to our dedicated partners, advisors, and team for their ongoing support and collaboration. Looking ahead, we are excited to continue working together towards a world where young people feel well and thrive. […]

Government demand as a catalyst for scale: Reflections from Kenya
By Anushree Banerji, Portfolio Manager Earlier this fall, I joined our ecosystem partner, Insight Health Advisors (IHA), in Kisumu, Kenya, for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Lake Region Economic Block (LREB) to co-implement the Mountain Model. The LREB, a bloc of 14 counties, is one of the six regional blocs […]

Community Empowerment Lab (CEL) Wins Grand Challenges Canada’s Rotman Innovation of the Year Award
— CEL’s innovative Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) approach is transforming neonatal care in Uttar Pradesh, India, saving lives and improving health outcomes for newborns — Toronto, Canada, December 16, 2024—The Community Empowerment Lab (CEL) has been awarded the prestigious Rotman Innovation of the Year Award for 2024 in recognition of its transformative work in scaling […]

From Awareness to Action: 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence
By Neelam Azmat – Portfolio Manager, SRHR & SGBV As part of our efforts to mark the 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence, last week we screened The Girls of Meru, a documentary that follows the team of the 160 Girls Project, led by the team at the equality effect, as they embarked […]