Volunteer Surgery

Bio:Claire Topal serves as the Vice President of the International Health and Society, Director of the Center for Health and Aging (CHA), and the Managing Director of the Pacific Health Summit.

Ms. Topal directs research, publications, and health policy labs for NBR’s Center for Health and Aging. Her areas of focus include health information technology, malnutrition, emerging infections and pandemics, and maternal, newborn, and child health.

She also serves as Managing Director for the Pacific Health Summit, overseeing the development of the agenda and relationships with key partners and participants. Since joining NBR in 2005, she has worked closely with the Executive Director and Executive Committee to shape and implement the Summit's strategic direction.

Prior to joining NBR, Ms. Topal taught fine art and English literature in Shanghai from 2002–03 and worked for the social science journal Issues & Studies: An International Quarterly on China, Taiwan, and East Asian Affairs in Taipei in 2004. She was an Associate Account Executive at the Vantage Consulting Group in New York City from 2001–02 and worked at the International Desk of the Associated Press and in the Cultural Affairs office of the Louvre Museum in Paris in 2000.

Ms. Topal holds an AB in French and Studies in Modernism, Phi Beta Kappa, cum laude, from Cornell University and an MA from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where she focused on Pacific Asia Studies and Conflict Resolution.

http://www.pacifichealthsummit.org/about/leadership/claire.aspx

Pacific Health Summit: The goal of the Pacific Health Summit is to connect science, industry, and policy for a healthier world. Every June we convene top decision-makers in science, policy, industry, medicine, and public health to discuss how to realize the dream of a healthier future through the effective utilization of scientific advances combined with industrial innovation and appropriate policies. Each year we focus our discussion on an issue of critical importance; maternal and newborn health in 2010, multi-drug resistant tuberculosis in 2009, malnutrition in 2008, and pandemic influenza in 2007. .

http://www.pacifichealthsummit.org/

http://nbr.org/ NBR conducts advanced independent research on strategic, political, economic, globalization, health, and energy issues affecting U.S. relations with Asia. Drawing upon an extensive network of the world’s leading specialists and leveraging the latest technology, NBR bridges the academic, business, and policy arenas.

NBR disseminates its research through briefings, publications, conferences, Congressional testimony, and email forums, and by collaborating with leading institutions worldwide. NBR also provides exceptional internship opportunities to graduate and undergraduate students for the purposes of attracting and training the next generation of Asia specialists.