BALTIMORE — (AP) The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Health Security has been awarded a three-year, $16 million grant to support work on strengthening health security and public health preparedness.

The center announced the grant from the Open Philanthropy Project in a statement Wednesday.

The grant will also support work on preventing and preparing for the most serious global biological risks.

The center’s mission is to protect people’s health from the consequences of epidemics and disasters and ensure that communities are resilient to major challenges.

Officials say the grant will focus on strengthening understanding of serious biological risks and responses to these risks. It will also support work on assessing how new technologies could reduce or deepen those risks.

(photo: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health)