WHO | Week Ahead for media - 19 June 2026

No images? Click here Friday, 19 June 2026  | Issue 357   Subscribe to receive this weekly update Atmeh Maternity and Paediatrics Hospital, northern Syria © WHO / Khalil Ashawi    Tuesday, 23 June WHO urges countries to use newborn screening as birth defects become a growing cause of child death and disability On Tuesday, 23 June, the World Health Organization (WHO) will release a new report Strengthening capacity for newborn screening, diagnosis and management of birth defects, showing that early detection and treatment can save lives and help millions of children thrive. The report highlights how early detection and treatment can help children reach their full potential, reduce lifelong disability and prevent deaths.  It aims to support ministries of health, especially in low- and middle-income countries, to prioritize conditions for newborn screening depending on the country context. Advance access to the report is offered to journalists only, and WHO experts are available for interviews.  To request access or interviews, please contact guerraja@who.int with a copy to mediainquiries@who.int.  The embargo lifts at 11.00 CEST / 09.00 GMT on 23 June. Wednesday, 24 June Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report  SDG 7 aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all. The new joint report, to be released at 08:00 EDT/14:00 CEST/16:00 GST on 24 June, highlights persistent global energy gaps, with 655 million people still lacking electricity and two billion relying on unsafe cooking solutions, adversely impacting the health of people and the planet. The Energy Progress Report is a joint report of the International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), the World Bank, and the World Health Organization (WHO).  It will be available at https://trackingsdg7.esmap.org/ upon release. ************* Self-Care Month 2026 Self-Care Month starts on 24 June.  This year’s theme is: Self-Care puts your health in your hands: Test. Track. Thrive. Test – when you need a baseline.  To help maintain and improve your health and well-being, you need a clear picture of where you are now. Track – when you want to see any patterns and introduce/increase self-care actions like eating healthily, exercise and getting enough sleep. Thrive –live with confidence and watch your health bloom. Further information: Self-care month 2026 and the fact sheet Thursday, 25 June High-level strategic meeting for the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH) The WHO-led Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate Change and Health (ATACH) brings together over 100 countries and over 100 partners prioritizing increased action on climate change and health at the national level. A high-level strategic meeting of the Alliance will be held on 25 June in Paris, under the auspices of the Ministry of Health of France, to renew the health sector’s commitment to sustainable, low-carbon and climate-resilient health systems in the face of the global climate crisis. Journalists wishing to attend the meeting online should send their full name and news organization to atach@who.int by 22 June.  WHO and ATACH experts are available for interviews; please send your requests to atach@who.int with a copy to mediainquiries@who.int. Friday, 26 June Progress report on WHO's alcohol policy initiative WHO's new report, Implementing what works in alcohol policy: progress report on the SAFER initiative, demonstrates how countries are beginning to turn evidence-based alcohol policy into action, even as alcohol-related harm continues to cause an estimated 2.6 million deaths each year. The report tracks how governments — often working alongside civil society — are using WHO's SAFER package to curb alcohol harm through measures such as tighter controls on availability and marketing, drink–driving action, treatment and taxation. Launched in 2018 and anchored in the Global Alcohol Action Plan 2022–2030, SAFER is WHO's flagship initiative on alcohol policy. Other WHO events of interest (full list here)  3rd Global Convening of the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH), 22 – 24 June Social Behavior Change Summit and sexual and reproductive health and rights, 22 – 26 June Scaling up the Global Platform: working together to close the childhood cancer survival gap through sustainable access to quality-assured medicines, 24 June (webinar) How can we better understand, assess and demonstrate the real-world impact of research, and achieve greater societal value in the future?, 26 June (webinar)   Latest news from WHO here Outbreak of Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus here WHO events here Sign up for our newsletters here WHO photos available for media use here WHO media contact: mediainquiries@who.int You are receiving this NO-REPLY email because you are included on a WHO mail list. If you have been forwarded this update you can click here to subscribe. Do not reply to media@campaign.who.int as it is an unmonitored mailbox. Journalists may write to mediainquiries@who.int.         Share    Tweet    Share    Forward  World Health Organization, Avenue Appia 20, 1202 Geneva 27, Switzerland  Unsubscribe