Universities Allied for Essential Medicines

= We are a group of university students who believe that our universities have an opportunity and a responsibility to improve global access to public health goods. [1]

URL = http://uaem.org/

Description

"Universities and publicly funded research institutions will be part of the solution to the access to medicines crisis by promoting medical innovation in the public interest and ensuring that all people regardless of income have access to essential medicines and other health-related technologies.

Our Mission

As a non-profit organization rooted in a global movement of university students, UAEM aims to

(1) promote access to medicines and medical innovations in low- and middle-income countries by changing norms and practices around academic patenting and licensing, supported by our own independent research,

(2) ensure that university medical research meets the needs of people worldwide and

(3) empower students to respond to the access and innovation crisis.

Our Values

As committed students from all over the world who passionately believe in social justice and health equity, we find it unacceptable that millions of people do not have access to essential medicines. We are particularly concerned about people in developing countries who are disproportionately affected by the access to medicines crisis.

Universities have a social compact with society and, as educational and research institutions, they have a responsibility to promote and manage the deployment of innovations for the public benefit. In no field are the moral imperatives to do so as clear as they are in medicine.

Students are uniquely positioned to push for normative change in their universities and research institutions. We will use the intellectual sophistication, rigor and integrity of our members to fight for increased innovation as well as access to medicines and health-related technologies for all.

Our work is guided at all times by principles of non-partisanship, democracy, transparency and respect." (http://uaem.org/about-us/)