Prof. Fran Baum, Dr. Toni Delany-Crowe, and Dr. Toby Freeman attended an international research meeting in Bellagio, Italy, for the project ‘Punching above their weight: Explaining why some countries have longer life expectancies than predicted by their income level.’ The meeting was the result of a successful Rockefeller Foundation application, organised by Prof. Baum and Prof. David Sanders, University of the Western Cape, South Africa, and academic status holder with the Southgate Institute.

The meeting brought together 21 academics, civil society actors, and policy makers from 13 countries to design research to analyse the factors that assist a country to punch above its weight in terms of life expectancy relative to national income. The research seeks to complement existing literature on countries punching above their weight that has largely focused on health systems by focusing on social and political determinants of health.

A wide range of conceptual issues and research methods were explored, and positive case studies of Rwanda, Vietnam, Nepal, and Spain were considered. The meeting marked the beginning of an international network of collaborators to pursue future research opportunities on this topic, with a range of grant applications planned including one led in Australia to the NHMRC.

For more information, please contact Dr. Toni Delany-Crowe, toni.delanycrowe@flinders.edu.au .