Matteo Pianella, Giovanni Forchini and Katharina Hauck

I want to bring to your attention an important upcoming event in Stockholm on the 19th and 20th of June 2024: The first Workshop on the Economics of Pandemic Preparedness. This two-day gathering will bring together epidemiologists, economists, and policymakers working in the field of pandemic preparedness.

The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred a surge of interdisciplinary research on response systems and has generated new models and policy frameworks for future preparedness. Despite the significant advancements, much of this research has been siloed within different institutions worldwide, offering limited opportunities for cross-collaboration. This workshop is aimed at providing a forum for researchers to share, discuss, and synthesise their findings. Our aspiration is for these discussions to spark new ideas and partnerships.

We are particularly keen on showcasing a diverse array of research, including:

• Innovative modelling work that integrates economic and epidemiological perspectives;
• Policy-oriented papers;
• Analyses focused on specific countries, including descriptive studies;
• Retrospective evaluations of COVID-19 response strategies;
• Comprehensive literature reviews.

We are also honoured to host two distinguished guests: Dr Edith Patouillard from the WHO and Professor Aditya Goenka from the University of Birmingham. They both produced innovative applied and theoretical research at the intersection of economics and epidemiology, and their different focus and expertise will provide fertile ground for discussions.

The workshop will be hosted at Hotel J, located in the southeast of Stockholm near the Nyckelviken nature reserve. It is a beautiful location with easy access to the city centre and the Stockholm archipelago, which is stunning in June.

If you are interested, please submit your paper or working paper via the workshop website https://www.umu.se/en/wepp/. The provisional deadline for submission is the 1st of May 2024, and the full program will be available in late May.

The event is jointly organised by Umeå University and Imperial College London's Jameel Institute.

Some references:

https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/cassidy-nelson-12-ways-to-stop-pandemics/

https://www.nature.com/articles/s43588-022-00233-0

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/eclinm/PIIS2589-5370(21)00550-2.pdf

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00199-022-01468-8