U.S. - Russia
Civil Society Summit
Moscow, Russia,
July 6 -7, 2009
Executive Summary
Common Problems -- Shared Solutions.
The Civil Society Summit was organized around six lines of work that
address problems confronting both nations. . . . Working groups began to correspond before the Moscow
Summit, then met for two days with the goal of developing recommendations for collaboration and the
exchange of best practices and skills among U.S. and Russian NGOs and the private sector.
President Obama’s presence at the Civil Society Summit drew unprecedented attention to the constructive
power of grassroots initiatives and citizen-to-citizen exchange. . . . The messagethat governments alone cannot
solve problems was clearly sent and – equally importantly – endorsed by a solid majority of the Russian participants.
Many challenges stand between the proposal of these initiatives and their successful launch. Obtaining the
necessary funding will be difficult at a time when NGOs are competing for ever scarcer resources as foundations,
corporations, and governments struggle to recover from the global financial meltdown. Ideally, a mix of
public
and private expertise and financing from both countries will be brought to bear to support projects from a
spectrum of disciplines.
A more fundamental challenge will be to change old habits and assumptions about the most effective approach
to joint activity and to find opportunities – perhaps still rare – where more symmetrical, peer-to-peer engagement
is possible. A realistic
appraisal shows that civil society practitioners in Russia and the United States operate in very
different environments. Despite these differences, both countries are in a period of accelerated political, economic,
and social evolution as their new presidents consolidate their administrations and respond to the still-deep economic
crisis. The fluid political environment presents anopportunity for people from across the political, business, and
nonprofit spheres to discover new ways to collaborate to benefit ordinary citizens.
* * * *
Chronic health problems generate staggering social and economic costs in Russia and the United States.
Non-communicable disease is the leading cause of illness, disability, and mortality in both countries. The
public health working group brought together Russian and American physicians and public health
professionals to
consider cooperative approaches to systemic health-care problems.
Public Health Working Group
Chronic health problems generate staggering social and economic costs in Russia and the United States
Non-communicable disease is the leading cause of illness, disability, and mortality in both countries.
Treatment of chronic and preventable conditions has propelled soaring health care costs in the United States,
overwhelmed federal and state budgets, and handicapped businesses. In Russia, chronic disease has corroded
the labor force, impeding economic development and diversification. With both societies
facing economic crises,
it is critical to share knowledge, skills and experience in the prevention and management of chronic disease.
The public health working group brought together Russian and American physicians and public health professionals
to consider cooperative approaches to systemic health-care problems. Participants focused on issues surrounding
chronic disease in both countries’ health-care systems and created a slate of ecommendations for the development
of bilateral projects and exchange of best practices.
The group’s proposals emphasize exchange of clinical professionals, codevelopment of public health campaigns,
and joint inquiries into the causes and consequences of the primary drivers of illness. Within this framework, the
group identified promising areas for cooperation, including efforts to detect and treat diabetes and hypertension,
education on smoking and responsible alcohol consumption, and strategies to improve pregnancy outcomes.
The group was sensitive to concerns about the “assistance” formulation that has characterized so much of U.S.-
Russia interaction over the last two decades –
instead emphasizing genuine partnership, where health benefits are
anticipated for both populations. Participants
also stressed collaboration with government and the private
sector, as well as institutional mechanisms to monitor
progress and issue reports.
Recommended Areas for Cooperation
Public education campaigns aimed at curbing destructive behavior and
promoting preventive measures to improve health outcomes.
• Perform joint research into effective social marketing techniques, capitalizing
on existing work in both countries.
• Develop policy recommendations on the regulation and taxation of alcohol and tobacco.
• Target divers populations, including young and middle-aged men, medical
professionals, teachers, pregnant women, and youth/students.
An open data initiative to facilitate evidence-based medicine and
consumer choice
• Build on initial efforts in the U.S. to increase “information liquidity,” like standardized
electronic health records and rating systems for health-care providers.
Non-communicable disease is the leading cause of
illness, disability, and mortality in Russia and the United States.
• Encourage the availability of health data – especially statistics that could support evidence-based medicine and performance measures for healthcare institutions.
• Promote consumer-friendly platforms to access data that spurs informed
health-care decisions.
Exchange of information and experience among health-care providers
and medical professionals.
• Scale up existing efforts (e.g., the Balashikha Project on reproductive health in Moscow
Oblast and the Eurasian Medical Education Program on prevention/management of hypertension/cardiovascular
disease in several regions).
• Develop exchanges of medical professionals as a first step toward building in-country capacity.
• Create working groups focused on a systems approach and evidence-based medicine.
• Promote surveillance as an integral component of effective care, with immediate attention to
the implementation of a national women’s health survey in Russia.
