Interview Series
Getting to Zero
Getting to Zero is Sabin’s focus on reaching zero preventable infections through vaccinations.
Latest Episode
December 11, 2025 – Her early work as a pediatrician, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where limited access to care generates overwhelming demand, convinced Dr. Sue Ann Costa Clemens that prevention measures like vaccines are critical. She became a vaccinologist, contributing to the development of more than 20 vaccines, and was knighted Commander of the Order of the British Empire and Commander of Order of Rio Branco and Medical Merit of the Federal Republic of Brazil for her work. Yet it is her efforts to build the next generation of vaccinologists through programs at the University of Oxford and the University of Siena, where she launched the first master’s program in vaccinology, that she describes as “legacy work.” In this episode with host Dr. Nginache Nampota-Nkomba, Costa Clemens describes what next gen vaccinologists need to know and how graduates are changing vaccine practice internationally.
Past Episodes
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October 23, 2025 - The African continent is seeing "sproutings" of its own vaccine manufacturing, thanks to what Dr. Shabir Madhi, renowned South African physician and professor of vaccinology at the University of the Witwatersrand, calls “an exponential explosion” of researchers over the past 30 years. With more than 800 research papers and a resume that includes founding the African Leadership in Vaccinology Expertise (ALIVE) program, Madhi is at the epicenter of the explosion. In this episode of “Getting to Zero” he explores how governments can capitalize on this resource and how scientists can help advance what he describes as “a success story over the past decade in vaccine uptake.” Hosted by 2021 Sabin Rising Star award winner Dr. Nginache Nampota-Nkomba.
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September 12, 2025 - Dr. Paul Ngwakum has worked in many different environments over the past 30 years, from conflict settings to government consulting. The new global public health care realities, however, present new challenges – and as the regional health adviser for UNICEF’s Eastern and Southern Africa region, he has some ideas for how to move forward – including the best ways to reach children and families who have missed routine vaccinations. Here he talks with Dr. Sangwe Clovis about some of the best strategies for better immunization rates.
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July 23, 2025 - There's been some form of typhoid vaccine for more than 100 years. There's a global organization, the Typhoid Vaccine Acceleration Consortium (TyVAC), dedicated to getting the modern typhoid conjugate vaccine into arms. Yet it's still difficult to get to zero typhoid cases. TyVAC Project Director Dr. Matthew Laurens dives into the challenges and opportunities around typhoid vaccination, takes a look at the newest research, and discusses the ticking clock of antimicrobial resistance in the fight against this disease that infects millions every year.
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June 11, 2025 - Globally, measles cases are soaring. The reason: keeping the intensely infectious disease under control requires an exceptionally high percentage of the population to be vaccinated. Between the pandemic, increasing hesitancy, decreasing global aid and a false sense of security that the disease is “gone,” immunization against the virulent virus has dropped. Here, Sabin’s 2024 Rising Star, Prof. Nicole Basta, talks with Natasha Crowcroft, who served the past five years as the senior technical advisor on measles and rubella for the World Health Organization (WHO), about why it’s so difficult yet critical to get everyone vaccinated, and how rubella may be the next great immunization success story.
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January 9, 2025 - When it comes to bringing cervical cancer diagnosis and treatment to women everywhere, there is no stronger advocate than Dr. Zainab Bagudu. The pediatrician, former First Lady of Nigeria, founder of the Medicaid Cancer Foundation and now President-Elect of the global Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) is passionate about making cancer diagnosis and treatment available to everyone, everywhere. In this episode of "Getting to Zero," she shares perspective and hope for overcoming barriers to access and the need for awareness and support for ending cervical cancer.
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April 25, 2025 - One of the best-known researchers in malaria prevention and treatment, Sir Brian Greenwood of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has spent more than five decades living and working in Africa and developing tools to tackle this destructive disease. In this episode of “Getting to Zero,” hosted by Sabin Rising Star awardee Prof. Nicole Basta, he discusses why a malaria vaccine has been so hard to develop, some of the promising prospects on the horizon, and what is still needed to reach the malaria endgame.
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November 21, 2024 - "Go to the places where nobody wants to go.” For renowned physician and global public health pioneer Dr. Abhay Bang, the power to affect change and make a difference at the community level comes from listening to local voices and working from the ground up. In this episode of “Getting to Zero” with Sabin’s Anuradha Gupta, he shares some of the powerful lessons learned over 40 years of working with hundreds of villages around the Gadchiroli district in central India.
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October 30, 2024 - Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa has an inspiring vision: to make the Americas and Caribbean the first region globally to eliminate cervical cancer. In this episode of “Getting to Zero,” he outlines the plans and the collaborations it will take to bring ambitious goals for improved HPV vaccination, cervical cancer screening, and treatment to life in the vast region.
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August 22, 2024 - Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organization regional director for Africa, talks with Sabin’s Anuradha Gupta about the work of the Global HPV Consortium and why she is excited about the opportunities as the Consortium begins working with WHO Africa to accelerate efforts to eliminate cervical cancer in Africa.
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June 20, 2024 - In this episode of Getting to Zero, Mridu Gupta of CAPED India discusses how their organization, created by individuals who lost a loved one to cancer, works to strengthen systems and eliminate gaps in cervical cancer screening and treatment.
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May 1, 2024 - In this episode, we are honored to welcome Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization. An influential leader and economist, Dr. Ngozi brings her deep insights into the pivotal role of women's health in economic development.
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October 25, 2023 - Anuradha Gupta, President of Global Immunization at Sabin is joined by Dr. Anant Bhan of Sangath India to discuss the importance of aligning research with the specific health needs of marginalized communities, emphasizing access and human-centered design.
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September 14, 2023 - Sabin President of Global Immunization Anuradha Gupta speaks with Rt Hon. Helen Clark, the Board Chair of PMNCH and former Prime Minister of New Zealand, about the critical need for the new Global HPV Consortium to accelerate action on HPV prevention and cervical cancer elimination.
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April 26, 2023 - Sabin's Anuradha Gupta speaks to UNICEF's immunization chief, Dr. Ephrem Lemango, about actionable steps to reach the 67 million children who missed routine vaccinations during the pandemic.
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July 25, 2023 - Join Sabin’s President, Global Immunization Anuradha Gupta, as she talks with Cameroon physician and Sabin 2023 Rising Star awardee Dr. Sangwe Clovis Nchinjoh about “Getting to Zero” – how to achieve zero preventable deaths and zero-dose children.
Our Mission
We make vaccines more accessible, enable innovation and expand immunization across the globe.