PRB Webcasts

Eileen Crimmins is a professor of gerontology and sociology at the Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California and the director of training, Multidisciplinary Research Training in Gerontology. She is currently working on a number of projects related to aging, mortality, and health including "The Role of Biological Factors in Determining Differences in Health by Education and Income Level," the Healthy Life Expectancy in the Older Population Project, and looking at male/female differences in health and mortality as well as differences by gender in life stresses and strains. Crimmins talked with PRB about life expectancy in the United States compared with other countries; the reasons for differing mortality trends; and the effects of lifestyle, behavior, and the health care system on mortality.

Samuel Preston is the Fredrick J. Warren professor of demography, Population Aging Research Center, at the University of Pennsylvania. In the 1970s, Preston produced a landmark study, "Older Male Mortality and Cigarette Smoking," on the effects of smoking on mortality patterns. Preston talked with PRB about the current rates of smoking in the United States and its contribution to mortality in the United States and other developed countries.

Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) refers to the practice of full or partial removal of female external genitalia for nonmedical reasons. The procedure is practiced in at least 28 countries in Africa, parts of Asia and the Middle East, and among some communities in the United States, Canada, and Europe. FGM/C is practiced for a variety of reasons ranging from reducing female sexuality, perceived health and hygiene benefits, social reasons, and a mistaken belief in religious mandate. Since the early 1990s, FGM/C has gained recognition as a health and human rights issue. For over two decades, Berhane Ras-Work has been active in the fight against FGM/C. She is the founding president of the Inter-African Committee (IAC), a nongovernmental organization that promotes the health of women and children in Africa by fighting traditional practices that are harmful to the health of women. Ras-Work talked with PRB about the risks of FGM/C, the significance of the International Day of Zero Tolerance to FGM, and the

International public health assistance and policy has largely focused on HIV/AIDS and malaria in recent years, and family planning programs have often been overlooked. Despite a common misperception that global population growth has halted, an enormous and growing need for family planning exists.Five former directors of USAID's Population and Reproductive Health Program urge immediate action on family planning funding in the report, Making the Case for U.S. International Family Planning Assistance. The authors argue that investing in family planning provides substantial returns, not only by reducing unintended pregnancies and saving millions of lives, but also by making progress toward antipoverty and development goals. Steven Sinding, a senior scholar at the Guttmacher Institute and director of the USAID Office of Population from 1983 to 1986, spoke to PRB about the need for increased focus on family planning, the successes of previous family planning programs, and his hopes for the report's impact.