Airfinity has been selected as a finalist for the British Data Awards 2025 in the Data Partnership of the Year category. We have been shortlisted for our work with Bloomberg News to investigate the global resurgence of infectious diseases following the pandemic.
Our study, published in June 2024, revealed over 40 countries or territories have reported at least one infectious disease resurgence that’s 10-fold or more over their pre-pandemic baseline. The study has compiled data from over 60 organisations and public health agencies showing that the world is seeing a resurgence of at least 13 infectious diseases, with cases higher than before the pandemic in many regions. The findings highlighted three key drivers behind these outbreaks: falling vaccination rates, declining population immunity, and climate change disruptions.
This project aimed to address a major information gap in public health intelligence by assessing how infectious diseases rebounded after the disruptions caused by COVID-19. Surveillance reports typically focus on multiple diseases within a single country or a single disease across a region, often with limited time granularity. This project addressed that gap by delivering a comprehensive, near real-time, multi-disease global comparison—an innovative approach not previously attempted at this scale.
The British Data Awards is an annual quest to discover and celebrate the UK’s data success stories. The collaboration between Airfinity and Bloomberg News showcases the power of data-driven journalism in uncovering and contextualising global health trends and we’re delight the work is being recognised.
You can read the article on Bloomberg in this link and our interactive spike map here.