Sharon Camp, reproductive health pioneer, 1943-2025 – Financial Times

Report on the Life and Work of Dr. Sharon Camp in Relation to the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: A Lifetime Dedicated to Health and Equality

Dr. Sharon Camp (1943-2024) was a pioneering figure in sexual and reproductive health whose career significantly advanced several key UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Her work was fundamentally aligned with achieving SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) through dedicated action and policy influence. This report outlines her major contributions as they relate to these global goals.

Overcoming Barriers to Advance Gender Equality (SDG 5)

Dr. Camp’s early career was characterized by a resolve to overcome systemic gender bias, a direct challenge to the inequalities targeted by SDG 5. Despite facing sexism in academia, where a professor refused to recommend her for graduate studies, she persevered to earn a doctorate from Johns Hopkins. This achievement was a personal victory and a step toward challenging the patriarchal norms that limited women’s professional and academic opportunities, thereby promoting the principles of gender equality.

Championing Universal Access to Reproductive Health (SDG 3 & SDG 10)

Dr. Camp’s most significant contribution was addressing a critical gap in health equity, a core tenet of SDG 3 and SDG 10. She observed a major disparity in healthcare access: wealthier women could obtain emergency contraception through private physicians, while poorer women, who often had a greater need, could not. This inequality directly contravened the principle of universal access to healthcare.

Key Initiative: The Development of Plan B

To rectify this inequity, Dr. Camp established the Women’s Capital Corporation. This initiative, financed by non-profits to achieve a public health objective, is a prime example of SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). The corporation’s mission was to develop and secure FDA approval for an emergency contraceptive pill, making it accessible to all women, regardless of socioeconomic status.

The resulting product, Plan B, fundamentally altered the landscape of reproductive health. Its eventual approval for over-the-counter sale was a monumental step towards achieving universal access.

Impact on Sustainable Development Goals:

• SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being): The initiative directly supported Target 3.7 by ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services.
• SDG 5 (Gender Equality): It empowered women by providing them with greater control over their reproductive lives, a critical component of achieving gender equality as outlined in Target 5.6.
• SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The project dismantled a system where access to essential healthcare was determined by wealth, directly promoting health equity and reducing inequalities of outcome.

Leadership in Policy and Research for Global Health

As president and CEO of the Guttmacher Institute, Dr. Camp leveraged research and policy to advance global health goals. She championed evidence-based advocacy to influence policy at both domestic and international levels.

Major Policy Contributions:

1. Global Funding Advocacy: She was instrumental in building the business case for international investment in sexual and reproductive health, contributing to a significant increase in funding for family planning services worldwide, in line with SDG 3 and SDG 17.
2. Domestic Healthcare Reform: She successfully fought for the inclusion of the contraceptive coverage guarantee in the U.S. Affordable Care Act, a landmark achievement for SDG 3 and SDG 10 within a national context.
3. Mentorship and Capacity Building: She was a dedicated mentor, committed to nurturing the next generation of leaders to ensure the sustainability of efforts to achieve global health and gender equality goals.

Legacy and Enduring Commitment to Sustainable Development

Dr. Sharon Camp’s career provides a powerful model for how targeted, innovative action can drive progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Her work demonstrates that addressing health disparities is intrinsically linked to advancing gender equality and reducing broader societal inequalities. Her lifelong mission to remain “useful” reflects a profound commitment to the principles of social progress, equity, and well-being that form the foundation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  The article is centered on Sharon Camp’s work in sexual and reproductive health. Her primary achievement was developing and marketing the “morning after” contraceptive pill, Plan B, to prevent unwanted pregnancies. This directly contributes to ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being. The text also mentions her efforts to secure contraceptive coverage in the Affordable Care Act and her work on family planning services globally.

• SDG 5: Gender Equality

  The article highlights gender equality on two fronts. First, it details the “casual sexism” Camp faced in her academic career, such as a professor refusing to recommend her for graduate school because he believed she would “just get married and have children and waste your degree.” Second, her entire professional life was dedicated to empowering women by advancing their sexual and reproductive health and rights, giving them more control over their lives and futures.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  A core motivation for Camp’s work was addressing health inequality. The article explicitly states she saw a “divide between the healthcare that well-to-do women got versus what poorer women got.” Her goal in making an emergency contraceptive pill widely available was to ensure “rich and poor women alike could retrospectively avert the risk of an unwanted pregnancy,” thereby reducing inequality in access to essential healthcare.

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  The article touches upon the importance of equal access to education. It describes how Camp, undeterred by a professor’s sexist refusal to support her, pursued and obtained a master’s and a doctorate. She noted that her advanced degree “made all the difference in the world” in how she was perceived, highlighting the role of higher education in overcoming gender-based discrimination and achieving professional success.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 3.7: Universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services

   This target aims to “ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education.” Camp’s life’s work directly aligns with this. Her development of Plan B, her efforts to make it available over-the-counter, her fight for contraceptive coverage in the Affordable Care Act, and her work to increase funding for family planning services are all concrete actions toward achieving this target.

2. Target 5.6: Universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights

   This target is closely related to 3.7 but is framed from a gender equality perspective. Camp’s work at Population Action International, which “works to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights,” and her creation of Plan B are fundamental to ensuring women have the reproductive rights this target advocates for.

3. Target 10.2: Empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all

   This target seeks to promote inclusion irrespective of economic or other status. Camp’s specific focus on making emergency contraception accessible to “poorer women” who previously “struggled to access the treatment” is a direct effort to reduce health inequality and promote the inclusion of economically disadvantaged women in essential healthcare systems.

4. Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere

   The article provides a clear example of the discrimination this target aims to eliminate through the story of Camp’s professor who refused to write her a recommendation for graduate school based on her gender. Her subsequent success serves as a counter-narrative to such discriminatory attitudes.

5. Target 4.3: Equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education

   Camp’s determination to pursue a doctorate at Johns Hopkins despite facing sexist barriers in her undergraduate college directly relates to the goal of ensuring equal access for women to tertiary education. Her story underscores the historical challenges women faced in this area.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Access to and availability of modern contraceptive methods

  The entire narrative around the development of Plan B and its approval for “over-the-counter sale in the US” serves as a direct indicator. The shift from a prescription-only treatment available to “wealthier women” to a widely accessible product for “rich and poor women alike” is a clear measure of progress for Targets 3.7 and 5.6.

• Reduction in health disparities based on economic status

  The article implies an indicator by highlighting the initial problem: the “divide between the healthcare that well-to-do women got versus what poorer women got.” The success of Camp’s initiative can be measured by the reduction of this divide, specifically in access to emergency contraception. This is a qualitative indicator for Target 10.2.

• Policies and laws that guarantee access to reproductive health

  The article mentions Camp’s fight to “secure the contraceptive coverage guarantee in the Affordable Care Act.” The existence and enforcement of such legal guarantees are key indicators for measuring progress on Targets 3.7 and 5.6.

• Women in leadership positions

  While not a quantitative metric in the article, Camp’s own career trajectory—becoming president and CEO of the Guttmacher Institute and founding her own corporation—serves as a qualitative indicator of women overcoming systemic barriers to achieve leadership roles, relevant to the broader goals of SDG 5.

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: ft.com