Health Equity Matters is celebrating the contribution of its International Program Director, Felicity Young AO, as the globally recognised leader steps back from her role.
After more than three decades working to improve HIV and AIDS treatment and prevention and sexual and reproductive health around the world, Felicity Young will retire in July.
Health Equity Matters’ CEO Dash Heath-Paynter said the scale of Felicity Young’s contribution to global health was profound.
“Felicity’s sophisticated understanding of HIV puts her in a rare category. She is one of the few people equally adept at designing and implementing HIV prevention programs in high prevalence settings, generalised epidemics such as sub-Saharan Africa or delivering focused strategies for key populations in the Indo Pacific, like the Global Fund multicountry grant she has led since 2021.
“Over three decades she has immeasurably improved health and saved lives around the world. Felicity’s leadership has made an enormous impact globally, and we are humbled to have worked alongside her.
“Felicity’s retirement and absence will be felt by her colleagues, but we will ensure her insights and expertise continue through the international work we do at Health Equity Matters.”
Felicity Young said it had been an honour to dedicate the core of her career to working to end the transmission of HIV and AIDS-related deaths around the world.
“I am proud of the work I have done over more than three decades, but it wouldn’t have been possible without intelligent, motivated and brave colleagues.
“I want to thank community advocates, researchers, clinical leaders and, particularly, the people with lived experience of HIV who have contributed to our efforts to end transmission globally.
“I retire knowing this global effort will continue. I hope governments around the world understand the importance of investing in community programming and the many lives these programs have saved.”
Felicity Young has helped create and execute programs across the world, responding to epidemics in Africa and the Indo-Pacific as well as holding senior advocacy, policy and leadership positions for the University of Witwatersrand, Futures Group International, RTI International and on the Global Fund’s Technical Review Panel.
The former executive director of Health Equity Matters (formerly Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations) has also made significant contributions to late-stage virtual elimination of HIV in Australia.
Media contact: Kathleen Ferguson – 0421 522 080