In an increasingly integrated and globalized world characterized by new cross-border threats to health, widening disparities in access to health care, and an unacceptable level of human suffering and premature mortality in developing countries, civil society actors are asking "why is so little progress being made"? Like its critically-acclaimed predecessor, the second edition of the Global Health Watch covers a comprehensive range of health topics, including access to medicines, mental health, water and sanitation, nutrition, and war and conflict.