Dr John Reeder is director of TDR (also known as the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases) at the World Health Organization (WHO). Since 2012, he has been responsible for overseeing TDR’s activities and development of its policies, strategy and budget for submission to TDR’s governing bodies, the WHO Executive Board, and the World Health Assembly. Prior to joining TDR, he was director of the Centre for Population Health and Head of the Office of International Health Research at the Burnet Institute in Melbourne and also director of the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research.

After completing doctoral training in Microbiology, his career path was shaped by volunteer service in Papua New Guinea. His international experiences led him to be a strong supporter of the global research effort and become an advocate for research design to take account of its final goal.