The Trinity Challenge Welcomes the Institute of Philanthropy’s Generous Contribution in Mitigating Antibiotic Resistance

The Trinity Challenge (a charity supporting the creation of data-driven solutions to help protect against global health threats), has been generously awarded HKD 12 million (£1.23 million) funding from the Institute of Philanthropy empowered by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. Their pledge will bolster the Trinity Challenge’s efforts in upscaling innovation and advocacy on antibiotic resistance and advancing solutions to safeguard public health worldwide.

The Trinity Challenge on Antimicrobial Resistance is a competition calling for innovators to propose solutions that improve the understanding of antimicrobial resistance and affect change by harnessing the power of technology and community data. The contribution will enable the Trinity Challenge to build advocacy and campaigning in the area of antibiotic resistance, as well as to continue working with challenge winners in the delivery and communication of their innovative research, data analytics, and collaborative initiatives.

Antibiotic resistance remains a critical threat, requiring collaborative and multi-disciplinary approaches to mitigate its impact. A 2019 global study on the impact of antimicrobial resistance concluded that 1.27 million deaths per year worldwide were a direct result of the bacteria causing the infection being resistant to antibiotics^[1].

Professor Marc Mendelson, Director, the Trinity Challenge, said: “We are thrilled to welcome the Institute of Philanthropy empowered by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust as a partner in our mission to address the antibiotic emergency. Their generous support will enable us to further our collective efforts in leveraging data and innovation to combat one of the most pressing threats to public health.”

Ms Ada Chu, Secretary-General of the Institute of Philanthropy, expressed her enthusiasm for the partnership with The Trinity Challenge, stating, “Bold, coordinated, and timely public health action is essential in addressing pressing health issues. Our strategic collaboration with The Trinity Challenge in combating antibiotic resistance presents exciting opportunities to drive innovative solutions for one of the most critical public health crises of our time. We are thrilled with this partnership and eagerly anticipate the transformative solutions that will emerge from this competition.

The Trinity Challenge extends its gratitude to the Institute of Philanthropy for their commitment to advancing global health and support in addressing the antibiotic emergency.

For more details or further comment contact Head of Communications and Engagement Charlie Alderwick: [email protected] +447580 094013

For more information on the Trinity Challenge, please visit https://thetrinitychallenge.org/

About Antimicrobial Resistance

Antimicrobials are drugs used to combat bacteria (antibiotics), fungi (antifungals), viruses (antivirals) and parasites (antiparasitics).

Antimicrobial resistance happens when the microbes that cause infections evolve, stopping the medicines designed to kill them from working. This leads to treatments becoming ineffective and allowing infections to become increasingly difficult, or in some cases, impossible to treat. In the case of bacteria, this process is called antibiotic resistance, and this is the focus of the Trinity Challenge on Antimicrobial Resistance.

The speed at which antibiotic resistance is growing is a direct response to misuse and over use of antibiotics across our healthcare systems and the food industry. The situation with respect to antibiotic resistance in bacteria has developed to the point that it now threatens our health, food, environment and global security. A 2019 global study on the impact of antimicrobial resistance concluded that 1.27 million deaths per year worldwide were a direct result of the bacteria causing the infection being resistant to antibiotics.^[1]

About The Trinity Challenge

The Trinity Challenge (TTC) is a charity supporting the creation of data-driven solutions to help protect against global health threats.

The inaugural 2021 Challenge on pandemic preparedness received applications from 340 teams across 60 countries and distributed a prize fund of £5.7 million across eight winning initiatives.

We believe data and analytics hold the key to building effective, affordable, and scalable solutions to current and future pandemics and health emergencies, and we are committed to working with governments, individuals and organisations across the world, to help improve our resilience against current and future threats to global health.

About Institute of Philanthropy

The Institute of Philanthropy (“IoP”) was established in September 2023 through a strategic grant of HK$5 billion from The Hong Kong Jockey Club and its Charities Trust. With its mission of becoming a leading “think-fund-do” tank for China and Asia, the IoP is dedicated to promoting philanthropic thought leadership at local, regional and global levels in partnership with fellow foundations, philanthropic stakeholders and other organisations. Grounded in the East, it provides a globally-connected convening platform to promote the common good for the betterment of societies everywhere.

^[1] Global burden of bacterial AMR — GRAM Project (ox.ac.uk)