Welcome to the September 2025 Apothek Dispatch, where we decode the signal from the noise on health, environment, and technology. Every month, I’ll share the developments, breakthroughs, and quiet revolutions that matter. This month, I’m sharing dozens of new opportunities from a hiring surge across senior, mid-level, and early-career roles.
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This month’s dispatch covers fall vaccine guidance and the White House’s surprising new Tylenol recommendations—early signals of the MAHA public health agenda—plus the rollout of a new US global health strategy as USAID cuts continue to ripple through TB and HIV patients worldwide. Since September is National Emergency Preparedness Month, we’ll share essential tips for keeping your household ready and resilient for whatever looms on the horizon. We’ll explore how your environment impacts your health, from the benefits of nature exposure to the hidden dangers of heat, plastics, pesticides, and deforestation, alongside a reflection on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Finally, we share an 18-lesson free course on thriving in the AI era. As usual, we’ll close with current opportunities: jobs, consultancies, fellowships, and grants for those working at critical frontiers.
Early autumn arrives with its familiar rituals: students returning to school, leaves changing colors as the days grow shorter, and the rush for preventive vaccines in advance of whatever winter might bring. Meanwhile, the “Make American Health Again” (MAHA) agenda threatens to undo access to both preventive measures and the health services that will be needed when the worst arrives. The New York Times editorial board summarizes how these policies endanger our health, including policies that will expose Americans to preventable illnesses, make future pandemics more likely, eliminate future cures, increase environmental toxins, and roll back health insurance coverage. Nevertheless, an ounce of prevention remains worth more than a pound of cure. And for those navigating increasingly muddled vaccine guidelines, this resource from Katelyn Jetelina is a good place to start.
This week brings a new low in manufactured mistrust, an announcement from the White House questioning the safety of acetaminophen. This summary by Dr. Craig Spencer presents the existing, and conflicting, evidence on the subject, alongside reflections on the wider implications.
The State Department’s new America First Global Health Strategy reshapes decades of humanitarian aid by channeling funds directly to governments, excluding NGOs, and prioritizing American business interests. The strategy promises greater efficiency, but continues to unravel the delicate global networks that have sustained global health work for decades. We continue to learn more about the human costs behind the dissolution of USAID: an additional 2.2 million deaths from tuberculosis by 2030 (source), and a retreat from HIV care and prevention. For those struggling to communicate these impacts, Hasan Minhaj’s conversation with former USAID assistant administrator for Global Health Atul Gawande offers a tribute to the agency:
Finally on the wellness front: a growing body of evidence supports social prescribing and exposure to nature for improved mental health. And since September is national emergency preparedness month, these resources from ready.gov, the New York Times, and the Red Cross are worth a read. No time for links? Then start with a CPR and Stop the Bleed course, and then apply what you’ve learned to refresh your home’s first aid kit and make an emergency go bag.
This month brought more bad news on the impacts of heat wave exposure, which can age you as much as smoking or drinking, and deforestation, which has led to a half a million deaths over the past 20 years.
Microplastics particles may be breeding dangerously resistant bacteria, and they have widespread health impacts throughout the human body as they cross placental and brain barriers. This essay in the New York Times explores how we got here over past decades. The past century of increasing reliance on disposable plastics has unleashed a “...tidal wave of waste.”
Another opinion essay examines pesticide exposure as a potential cause of rising rates of Parkinson’s disease. In the US, we require definitive proof of harm before regulation, allowing the use of thousands of untested substances in our environment every day. Applying the “precautionary principle” would flip that script: requiring safety data before market approval.
Finally, this NPR podcast reflects on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. It was a storm that unmasked inequalities embedded into the city’s physical architecture and layout. What came next is a complex story of survival and rebuilding, revealing both resilience and the limits of recovery.
This essay in Time Magazine by Murali Doraiswamy and Marc Benioff explores the rising integration of artificial intelligence in the healthcare industry. “Today’s AI algorithms are powerful tools that recognize patterns, predict, and even make decisions.” But for all its potential, the authors conclude that it can only supplement the human led care provided by the healing professions.
For even more on AI, this free 18-part course, appropriately titled “The Bullshit Machines,” addresses the challenge of navigating AI’s potential while understanding its limitations and risks.
“A ship is always safe at shore, but it’s not what it was meant for.”
-Albert Einstein
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Rapid Response Grant for racial and indigenous health equity research. Deadline October 1, 2025.
Motwani Jadeja India Fellowship for mid-career US professionals. Deadline October 31, 2025.
Princeton in Africa Fellowship for a year long post-graduate paid fellowship with a partner organization on the African continent. Deadline October 27, 2025.
AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship Deadline November 1, 2025.
Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellows Deadline November 3, 2025.
Harvard American Service Fellowship offering a scholarship and a stipend to enroll in the one-year, on-campus Mid-Career Master in Public AdministrationApplication. Deadline December 1, 2025.
Wadhwani AI Global Fellowship for early career technology policy candidates (may require Indian citizenship, OCI, or work authorization), based in New Delhi. More information here. No deadline specified.
Hoover Institution Post Doc Research Fellowship in Bio-Strategies & Leadership (Stanford University) Applications open now to individuals with a relevant PhD. Applications reviewed on a rolling basis, fellows onboarded in summer or fall 2026.
Emergency Medicine Leadership in Planetary Health (LiPH) Fellowship(Johns Hopkins University)Application open till filled (must be a board certified emergency physician to be eligible).
ADB: Director, Human and Social Development (in Manila) Deadline October 2, 2025.
Capitol Area Food Bank: Managing Director “Food is Medicine” No deadline specified.
Gates Foundation: Investment Officer, Strategic Market Tools Initiative No deadline specified.
FHI360: Global Health Security Center Senior Director No deadline specified
Audubon Society: Vice President, Conservation Action No deadline specified.
VOW for Girls: CEO No deadline specified
International Rescue Committee: Director, Health Policy, Advocacy and Communication No deadline specified.
Mathematics: Sr. Fellow, Value Based Care No deadline specified.
Catholic Relief Services: Project Director, CASCADE No deadline specified.
Malaria No More: CEO No deadline specified.
Partners in Health: Director, Consortium of Medical Schools–Africa in Kigali, Rwanda. No deadline specified.
CHAI: Director, Artificial Intelligence No deadline specified.
Evidence Action: Global (Senior) Director, Accelerator No deadline specified.
Evidence Action: Director, Partnerships No deadline specified.
PACT: Chief Development Officer No deadline specified.
FGS Global: Director, Health Communications No deadline specified.
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation: Senior Director, Technical Excellence Deadline September 10, 2025 but application appears open as of today.
George Mason University: Master of Public Health (MPH) Practicum Coordinator Deadline September 24, 2025 but application appears open as of today.
United for Global Mental Health: Heat and Mental Health Consultant Deadline September 28, 2025.
Open Philanthropy: Global Aid Policy - Program Associate Deadline October 5, 2025.
Children’s National Hospital: Program Lead No deadline specified.
Thinkwell: Technical Advisor/Senior Technical Advisor - Health Policy & Strategy No deadline specified.
University of Pennsylvania: Director of Global Policy Programs No deadline specified.
PSI: Senior Technical Advisor No deadline specified.
Consultant, Health Economics and Outcomes Research No deadline specified.
Bipartisan Policy Center: Senior Policy Analyst, Innovation, Health Program No deadline specified.
Public Health Program Specialist No deadline specified.
IADB: Health Specialist No deadline specified.
RF Catalytic Capital: Program Manager No deadline specified.
CARE: Research Partnership Manager No deadline specified.
Manager, HIV Prevention - Global HIV Access Program based in CHAI program country No deadline specified.
Senior Manager, HIV Prevention - Global HIV Access Program No deadline specified.
CHAI: Program Manager, Health Financing and Health Workforce in Malawi. No deadline specified.
CHAI: Senior Program Manager for Maternal, Newborn, Child Health and Nutrition (MNCHN) in Harare, Zimbabwe No deadline specified.
PSI: Health Systems Strengthening Consultant This appears to be an application to join their roster, not a specific call for work). No deadline specified.
CHAI:Technical Advisor, New Vaccine Introductions, Global Vaccine Delivery Preference for location within CHAI program countries (Africa/Asia). No deadline specified.
World Bank: Young Professionals Program Deadline Sept 30, 2025.
World Bank: Data Analytics Recruitment Drive Deadline October 2, 2025.
APHA: Climate, Health, Equity Internship Deadline October 6, 2025
Kings College London: Research Associate PhD or MSc with equivalent work experience required. Deadline October 8, 2025.
APCO: Health Communications Fellowship Deadline October 10, 2025.
Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine: Program Analyst (Clinical Affairs) PMP certification preferred. No deadline specified.
Jackson Foundation for Military Medicine: Research Associate No deadline specified.
Deloitte: Healthcare Quality Analyst No deadline specified.
Planetary Health Alliance: Program Specialist No deadline specified.
Johns Hopkins University: Research Coordinator No deadline specified.
Consortium of Universities for Global Health conference April 9-12, 2026. Abstract and panel submissions are due October 1, 2025, and pre-conference workshop submissions are due October 31, 2025.
Kinsey Institute 2025 Symposium: Sex and Aging October 4, 2025 in Bloomington, Indiana (or virtual).
Global Digital Health Forum December 3-5, 2025 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Prince Mahidol Awards Conference January 26-31, 2026 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Help us strengthen the signal. Share any opportunities you've found this month in the comments below.Thank you for joining Apothek Dispatch. I'm excited to share this journey with you! This newsletter is free to everyone, thanks to the generous support of fellow Apothek Dispatch members. To support the effort, subscribe or upgrade below:
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