35 Years of hera: The Journey So Far
This year, hera turned 35.
From an attic with a fax machine to a global cooperative shaping health and development, our journey has been one of flexibility, reinvention, and relentless commitment to making health a right for all.
The Beginning
In 1990, three young scholars — Leo Devillé, René Christensen, and Anne Buvé — met in London while studying health economics and epidemiology. Inspired by their shared experiences working in long-term health programmes in Africa, they decided to build something new: a cooperative that would put health research into action.
After days of brainstorming, they chose the name hera, short for health research for action. The choice reflected both their vision and their belief in collaboration. The name hera also evoked the Greek goddess: a fighter, a traveller, a symbol of resilience. Their office was a humble attic with a table, four chairs, and a fax machine — but the ambition was anything but small.
The Heart: Building the cooperative
hera's first decade was about survival, learning, and building. From three founders, hera grew to ten partners, developing expertise in health systems and public health across Africa and Asia. Assignments ranged from strengthening blood transfusion services throughout Africa to revamping Mongolia’s health system after the collapse of the Soviet Union. By 2000, turnover had reached €1 million, and hera’s reputation for quality was becoming its calling card.
Martine Vandermeulen joined in 1996, establishing the hera office and becoming the “heart” of the organisation, making sure that every member felt part of the hera family. On hera’s 11th birthday, the team sent a lithograph by a local artist as a thank-you gift to partners worldwide. Many still have it on their walls years later as a reminder of the bonds forged in those early years.
Expanding Horizons: Dancing with wolves
As hera matured, so did our scope. The cooperative expanded across Africa, Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. Younger associates brought fresh ideas, while a strong office team in Belgium kept operations steady. hera was thriving.
This era was defined by big shifts in global health: sector-wide approaches, budget support, and performance-based financing. hera was there, helping ministries design health financing reforms, strengthening medical supply chains, advising NGOs in fragile states, and shaping HIV/AIDS interventions.
The team even coined a motto for this period: “dancing with wolves.” Instead of resisting large institutions like the Global Fund, hera chose to join them, working from within to drive change.
A New Identity
In 2011, hera celebrated its 21st anniversary with a global gathering at ITM Antwerp. The cooperative also refined its identity: hera right to health and development, affirming the conviction that health is not just a service, but a right.
The following years brought global assignments—monitoring health sector performance in Sub-Saharan Africa, advising the European Commission, and tracking the impact of country-wide interventions.
Preparing for the future
By 2020, hera had grown to 25 partners and associates, nearly gender-balanced and representing every continent. With a turnover of around €4 million, it was time for the next generation. In 2021, Leen Jille and Marieke Devillé took on the roles of CEO and Director respectively, ushering in a new era of leadership.
hera also adapted to a changing world: Friends of hera meetings kept networks alive, and “kitchen table” digital gatherings replaced office sessions during the pandemic. By 2022, the majority of shareholders in hera were women, and by 2024 four staff members also joined as hera shareholders.
hera has expanded its focus beyond health into human rights, gender and social equity, humanitarian aid, water and sanitation, and climate change. New partners such as UN Women and the ILO joined the journey, with many more exciting partnerships to come.
Thank you to all of those who have accompanied us on this journey so far…we look forward to many more exciting things to come!