September 29, 2021 — New York City has selected Columbia University to run its new pandemic response institute, which has the goal of preparing for future disease outbreaks and attracting investment into the city. Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health will partner with the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, de Blasio said. Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, who will lead the pandemic response institute, said the initiative will create a framework to address vulnerabilities so the city can be better prepared in the event of another pandemic. El-Sadr is a university professor of epidemiology and medicine at Columbia University, the director of ICAP at Columbia University, and the director of the Global Health Initiative at the Mailman School of Public Health.”We will do this by building on Columbia University’s experience and expertise in addressing the toughest public health challenges around the world, and in collaboration with our people in the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, as well as a wide range of community research and industry partners,” El-Sadr said at the press conference.