Geoffrey So

Head of Policy & Partnerships, Novartis Foundation

Geoffrey So is the Head of Policy & Partnerships at the Novartis Foundation. Geoffrey works across the portfolio of global health initiatives to identify and cultivate collaborations with traditional and non-traditional health partners. Through these multisector partnerships, the foundation aims to strengthen healthcare delivery and health systems in low-resourced settings, and generate data and evidence for policy change, integration and/or scale of initiatives. He is also the focal point on urban health and digital health policy, and responsible for the engagement strategies and relationships with multilateral organizations.

Prior to joining the Novartis Foundation in 2016, Geoffrey worked at the United Nations (UN), World Health Organization (WHO) and UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. In the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General, he served as a global health advisor for the Every Woman Every Child initiative and supported the development and implementation of the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health; and as the advocacy and communications lead in the Post-2015 Unit for the launch of the 2030 Agenda, Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Goals Campaign. At WHO/Roll Back Malaria Partnership, Geoffrey was responsible for external relations with governments, civil society and the private sector to raise the political profile of malaria and to mobilize resources to combat the disease.

His work in academia was in clinical and social research, including the impact of HIV and Hepatitis C harm reduction programs among illicit drug users in Canada, the development of a self-administered influenza diagnostic tool, and the association between antiretroviral therapy and incident cardiovascular disease among HIV-positive individuals in Tanzania.

Geoffrey holds a Master of Science in Population & Public Health Research Methodology (Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics) from McMaster University, a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from the University of Toronto and a college diploma in biotechnology.