Maria Neira on going from refugee camp work with Médecins Sans Frontières to battling for clean air through the WHO

Maria Neira joined the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1993 as the Coordinator of the Global Task Force on Cholera Control. In 1999, she became the Director of the Department of Control, Prevention and Eradication. She was then appointed as the Director of the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health in 2005. During her career, Maria also worked with Médecins Sans Frontières in refugee camps in Central America. Maria served as the Vice Minister of Health and Consumer Affairs in Spain, as President of the Spanish Food Safety and Nutrition Agency, as the Public Health Adviser of the Ministry of Health in Mozambique, and as the United Nations Public Health Advisor/Physician for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Rwanda. Maria studied medicine and surgery at the University of Oviedo. She specialized in endocrinology and metabolic diseases at the Université René Déscartes. In addition, she holds a master’s degree in Public Health, a diploma in Human Nutrition from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie, and an international diploma in Emergency Preparedness and Crisis Management form the University of Geneva. In 2016, she received the “Inspirational Women in Geneva Working for the Environment” award, in additional to other international awards in France and Spain. LYRICS TO THE SONG: The Ballad of Ella Kissi-Debrah Reading in the papers Numbers written there Of how many die each year Cos of dirty air But numbers they don't speak Drama they lack Unlike the sound of hearing someone Die from an asthma attack What can change? So that - Ella Kissi-Debrah Didn't die in vein And we all take action And Policies change Ella Kissi-Debrah Hear our prayers So that no more children Will die From breathing air Ella Kissi-Debrah Deserves a happy tune But this song is not for her It is meant for you To pluck and play your heart strings So you think twice before we drive And decide who you will give your vote to So more kids stay alive So that - Ella Kissi-Debrah Didn't die in vein And we all take action And Policies change Ella Kissi-Debrah Hear our prayers So that no more children Will die From breathing air