Join Ngaire Woods, Dean of the Blavatnik School, in conversation with Devi Sridhar, author of How Not to Die (Too Soon) - The Lies We’ve Been Sold and the Policies That Can Save Us.

In her latest book, Devi Sridhar asks if you have ever questioned why, despite the avalanche of self-help books and optimisation hacks, we remain embroiled in multiple global health crises. Populations worldwide are gaining life-shortening excess weight (even in poorer countries), and water contamination is rampant (even in richer countries). In such dire circumstances, a gratitude journal won’t help.

She writes that the stark reality is that we’ve been sold a monumental lie. The obsession with individual health optimisation is a distraction from the real game-changer: holding governments accountable for policies that can significantly extend lifespans. How Not to Die (Too Soon) is a vital, transformative guide that shifts the focus from individual responsibility to societal accountability. It’s time to demand the changes that will save lives.

Devi Sridhar is a writer, broadcaster and world-leading expert in public health and wellbeing. She is Professor and Chair of Global Public Health at the University of Edinburgh and has advised the WHO, UNICEF, UNESCO and the Scottish, UK and German governments. Devi appears regularly on ITV and Channel 4 News, has a weekly column in the Guardian, tweets to over 300,000 followers, and recently became a certified Level 3 Personal Trainer. Her first book, Preventable, was a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week and a Sunday Times bestseller.