All major problems affecting the future of humanity are global and complex. The UN 2030 Agenda serves as beacon for what we must achieve collectively and in international partnership. Health is an effective entry point and compass for the Agenda’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as health significantly influences and is linked to all 17 SDGs. Better health on a healthy planet is a key aspiration for the future of mankind. Intuitively and universally, health is understood as having paramount importance and equal value for each person, individually and for our loved ones, and for all societies on our one planet earth.

Improving health is much more than medicine. To address and resolve the exceptional complexity at the local and at the global level, it requires cross-sectoral, transdisciplinary and collaborative efforts between the healthcare system, science, civil society, policymakers, governance and the private sector. Preserving health and overcoming disease is the pressing challenge of our time and the most noble goal.

Rudolf Virchow was a scientist, physician, anthropologist and politician. Virchow is a symbol and role model for the urgently needed holistic approach to improve health for all and thereby providing an example of global responsibility for generations to come. In this spirit, the Virchow Prize, deeply rooted in highest-quality research and profound humanistic academic values, intends to further strengthen our efforts to a better future.