| A Half Century Health Brandy E. Fisher Abstract
 The World Health Organization (WHO) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Recognizing that diseases and public health problems do not acknowledge international borders, the WHO was formed in 1948 to provide leadership in addressing international health issues. Today, with 190 member states, the WHO continues to strive for worldwide implementation of its definition of health: "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." The WHO has already made significant advances in international health conditions, such as the global eradication of smallpox in 1980, and the organization's Expanded Programme on Immunization, which has spurred an 85% increase in the number of children throughout the world who receive vaccinations. The WHO has also established health programs worldwide to help prevent the spread of disease, with notable success in addressing issues of environmental health such as nutrition, access to safe drinking water, and adequate sanitation. Despite past triumphs, there are many public health obstacles to overcome. WHO leaders are hoping that Gro Harlem Brundtland, the newly elected director-general and the first female leader of the WHO, will reinvigorate the organization with her political, medical, and activist experience, as well as her enthusiasm. Many believe that Brundtland's conviction that health and the environment are linked will result in the strengthening of environmental health programs.
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