Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR): the systemic risk investors should be talking about

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), according to the World Health Organisation, is one of the top 10 threats facing humanity today. Antimicrobials (including antibiotics) are medicines used to treat infection in humans, animals and plants. Their misuse or overuse drives the development of drug-resistant pathogens (think parasites for example) that no longer respond to medicines. 

In this episode, we step into the public health arena and speak to Abigail Herron, Global Head of ESG Strategic Partnerships at Aviva Investors. Abigail is co-founder of the Superbugs and Super Risks series of events and reports for investors and is heavily involved in the AMR space. We delve into why AMR is a systemic risk, why investors should care and how they can act. 

If an investor does want to take action on this, then it’s probably more powerful to intervene at a public policy level rather than engaging with companies because you need that market-wide intervention to correct the inherent market failure​ rather than just one or two companies addressing the issue.

Abigail Herron, Global Head of ESG Strategic Partnerships,
Aviva Investors

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