Season 13 • Episode 1051

1051 - The Fate of Foreign Aid in 2026

May 14, 2026

16:51

Episode Description

About this episode:

A recent study by the Rockefeller Foundation and ISGlobal estimates that cuts made to foreign aid last year could result in 23 million more deaths globally by 2030. In this episode: how researchers calculated this figure, why funding has slowed, and what global development leaders are trying to do about it.

Guest:

Eric Pelofsky, JD, MPP, is the vice president of international policy at the Rockefeller Foundation.

Host:

Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.

Show links and related content:

93 Countries Worldwide at Risk of Losing Nearly 23 Million More People by 2030—Rockefeller Foundation
"Taxpayer Money Went to Buy Food to Feed People… Now It's Being Burned"—Public Health On Call (September 2025)
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance—Public Health On Call (April 2025)
What Foreign Aid Means for National Security—Public Health On Call (February 2025)

Transcript information:

Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.