The UK Prime Minister announced a Review on Antimicrobial Resistance in July, calling for ideas to bring this growing threat under control. This is the Review team’s first paper, where we demonstrate that there could be profound health and macroeconomic consequences for the world, especially in emerging economies, if antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is not tackled. We believe that this crisis can be avoided. The cost of taking action can be small if we take the right steps soon. And the benefits will be large and long-lasting especially for emerging economies, including the so-called BRIC nations, who will need to make improved investments in their health infrastructure and build industries that leapfrog to the next generation of innovation. Defining the specific steps needed is what our sponsors the UK Prime Minister and the Wellcome Trust set us off to do: by the summer of 2016, we will recommend a package of actions that we think should be agreed internationally. To do this, over the course of our Review we want to explore the following five themes, starting with this paper.

1. The impact of antimicrobial resistance on the world’s economy if the problem is not tackled. 2. How we can change our use of antimicrobial drugs to reduce the rise of resistance, including the game-changing potential of advances in genetics, genomics and computer science. 3. How we can boost the development of new antimicrobial drugs. 4. The potential for alternative therapies to disrupt the rise in resistance and how these new ideas can be boosted. 5. The need for coherent international action that spans drugs regulation, and drugs use across humans, animals and the environment. We approach our goals with a blank sheet of paper and open minds. We want to hear from bright and innovative minds across all countries and disciplines, starting with the hard-earned experience of physicians, healthcare workers and their patients.