Rajvinder Samra The Open University Lecturer in Health I am a lecturer in the Faculty of Health and Social Care at The Open University. I have studied Psychology (BSc, University of Manchester), Occupational Psychology (MSc, University of Nottingham) and Applied Psychology (PhD, University of Nottingham). My PhD explored doctors’ and medical students’ attitudes toward older patients and their care in healthcare settings. I have an interest in attitudes research, both the qualitative exploration

Peter Rogers University of Bristol Professor of Biological Psychology Peter Rogers is Professor of Biological Psychology at the University of Bristol, UK. He trained in biology (BSc) and experimental psychology (MSc) at the University of Sussex. He completed his PhD at the University of Leeds, and postdoctoral research at the universities of Leeds and Manchester, moving to the Institute of Food Research, Reading in 1990. He moved to the University of Bristol in

Emma Jones The Open University Senior Lecturer in Law Emma joined the School of Law as a Lecturer in Law in December 2014 and became a Senior Lecturer in October 2018. She has worked as an Associate Lecturer on a variety of law modules since 2006. She is completing her PhD thesis (on the role of emotion in legal education) with Keele University. She is a qualified solicitor (non-practising) and has a PGCE

Andrew Cunningham andrew.cunningham@aon.com Aon Chief Commercial Officer, EMEA, Health Solutions Andrew is the Chief Commercial Officer for Aon’s Health Solutions business in EMEA, covering 29 countries. Working closely with Aon’s Global Benefits practice, Andrew has been serving multinational clients and prospects at Aon since 2003, holding a variety of positions including Senior Healthcare Consultant, Healthcare Manager, Healthcare and Risk Benefits Manager, Risk Practice Principal, EMEA Sales Director and most

Mathijs Lucassen The Open University Senior Lecturer in Mental Health I originally trained as an occupational therapist, and have worked clinically in mental health services in both England and New Zealand. Immediately prior to starting work at the Open University I worked as a lecturer and research fellow at the Department of Psychological Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Auckland.

Neil Graffin The Open University Lecturer in Law Neil is a Lecturer in International Law at The Open University. Prior to this Neil studied for a PhD in Law in Queen’s University Belfast, where he also completed both his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Neil has also worked as an Associate Lecturer with The Open University and a Teaching Assistant at Queen’s University. Neil’s research interests are within international human

Olivia Dunn olivia.dunn@easypooling.com Global Benefits Vision Editorial Assistant Olivia has worked in the insurance and benefits industry for several years. She holds a Bachelor of International Relations from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, and recently completed a Graduate Diploma of Science in Psychology at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Alongside her role as Editorial Assistant at GBV she works as Digital Specialist for Vitality Works, a Sanitarium company delivering

Pasquale Gorrasi gorrasi@geb.com Generali Employee Benefits Director of International Lines After graduating in Economics at Venice University, he started his career in the finance industry. He joined Assicurazioni Generali in 1990 as Junior Underwriter in the Surety Bond Department where he spent about 9 years, achieving the position of Senior Underwriter. Pasquale left Surety Bond Department to join the International Non-Life Corporate department where he held the responsibility for

Peter Devlin Deloitte Partner Peter Devlin is a Partner of Deloitte and heads their Total Rewards practice in Germany where he has been based for the last 16 years. In addition he leads the human capital Post Merger Integration team. He is responsible for advising clients on pensions, compensation and other Total Reward issues. Prior to moving to Germany he was a pensions actuary and investment consultant based in

Tim Spector King’s College London Professor of Genetic Epidemiology Tim Spector is a Professor of Genetic Epidemiology at Kings College, London & Director of the Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology at St Thomas’ Hospital, London. Professor Spector graduated from St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical School, London. After working in General Medicine, he completed a MSc in Epidemiology, and his MD thesis at the University of London. He founded

Jonathan Runstadler Tufts University Professor of Infectious Disease and Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine Dr. Runstadler seeks to understand genetic factors that impact susceptibility to infectious disease, specific or general and the repercussions for potential epidemics, persistence, and evolution of those infectious agents. His research is conducted within the context of the interactions that define the ecology between an infectious agent, the environment and the host. His

Michelle Sconce Massaquoi University of Oregon Doctoral candidate, microbiology, Michelle Sconce Massaquoi is a doctoral student in the Institute of Molecular Biology under the mentorship of biology professor Karen Guillemin. Massaquoi’s research focuses on understanding the interactions between gut bacteria and the host, specifically how gut bacteria influence the development of the pancreas. For this work, she uses zebrafish to study how a bacteria-secreted protein found in select gut

Linsey Marr Virginia Tech Professor Linsey Marr is the Charles P. Lunsford Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering in Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering. Marr, who was recently awarded a Fulbright fellowship, is an expert in air quality and health whose research interests include characterizing the emissions, fate, and transport of air pollutants in order to provide the scientific basis for improving air quality and health. She also conducts

Seema Lakdawala University of Pittsburgh Assistant Professor Seema Lakdawala is an Assistant Professor in the Microbiology and Molecular Genetics Department at the University of Pittsburgh. The Lakdawala lab studies the molecular properties contributing to the epidemiological success of influenza A viruses to better predict future pandemics. There are two main areas of research in her lab 1) exploring the dynamics of influenza viral RNA assembly and 2) defining properties necessary for

Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert @Drmom26 Rockland County, New York State, USA Commissioner of Health and Hospitals Dr. Ruppert is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center and a Distinguished Lecturer in Epidemiology and Community Medicine at New York Medical College. She began her career in a faculty medicine practice for St. Joseph Regional Medical Center, in Paterson, New Jersey, then in a private internal medicine practice

Sophie Medlin sophie@sophiedietitian.com King’s College London Lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics Sophie Medlin is a Lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics at King’s College London and a Freelance Dietitian. Sophie is an experienced clinical dietitian, having worked in the NHS for many years specialising in surgical gastroenterology and intestinal failure. Sophie moved from clinical dietetics to academia in 2014 and pursues research interests in colorectal and gastrointestinal disorders. Sophie maintains

It’s common for people to focus on their health at the start of the year. But few consider the well being of the microbes that live inside the human gut – the microbiome – which are vital to an individual’s good health.

Laura Healy Nottingham Trent University Senior Lecturer in Sport Coaching Dr. Laura Healy is a Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Coaching Science and teaches on the BSc Coaching and Sports Science programme. She supervises undergraduate and postgraduate research projects in areas related to sport psychology. Dr Healy joined Nottingham Trent University in September 2017. She successfully defended her Doctorate in Sport Psychology from the University of Birmingham in July 2015, which

Libby Richards Purdue University Associate Professor of Nursing Dr. Richards’ research efforts focus on understanding and intervening on the individual, interpersonal, and environmental influences on physical activity behavior. Past studies have focused on the use of dog walking to increase physical activity and included the implementation and evaluation of two randomized controlled trials (funded by the American Kennel Club and the Human Animal Bond Research Initiative). These interventions demonstrated effectiveness

Carly Wood University of Westminster Lecturer in Nutrition and Exercise Science I am a lecturer in Nutrition and Exercise Science at the University of Essex and have both a BSc (hons) and PhD in Sports and Exercise Science. I am also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. My research interests are focused on the role of natural environments in facilitating physical activity and whether being active in green spaces (Green Exercise) can

Darrell Cockburn Assistant Professor of Food Science Pennsylvania State University Our interests center around the processing of dietary fiber by the human gut microbiome. This fiber is composed primarily of the undigested carbohydrates in our diet. Humans can really only directly use the polysaccharide starch (mostly, see below), the disaccharides lactose, sucrose and maltose and their constituent monosaccharides glucose, galactose and fructose. All other carbohydrates are untouched by human

Connie Rogers Pennsylvania State University Associate Professor of Nutritional Sciences My research focuses on the role of changes in energy balance and related nutritional factors on inflammation, immune regulation and cancer risk using both animal models and human subjects.

Anja Shortland anja.shortland@kcl.ac.uk King’s College London Reader in Political Economy Dr Anja Shortland is Reader in Political Economy and Director of Postgraduate Research in the Department of Political Economy. Her current research projects are in peace science and the economics of crime. Although largely based on data analysis, her work usually cuts across disciplinary boundaries adopting techniques and insights from sociology, engineering, geography, politics, international relations and economics. Anja

Shira Jeczmien sj@lystechnologies.co.uk LYS Technologies Writer, Editor and Head of Content Shira Jeczmien is a writer, editor and head of content for LYS Technologies. Her writing focuses on technological advancements, trends and their impact on society.

Marc Reinhardt reinhardt@geb.com Generali Employee Benefits Director of the Americas region Marc Reinhardt has the equivalent of a combined post-grad/master degree in economics and insurance from the University of Frankfurt. He has worked for Generali since 1991 with postings in Germany, Italy, and the U.S. While in Germany, Marc specialized in tax and Labor Law as well as actuarial aspects of employee benefit plans for international companies. Moving to Italy,

Sarah Tottle Lancaster University Business psychologist Sarah Tottle is a doctoral candidate at the University of Lancaster, researching organisational health and wellbeing. She is conducting qualitative research into the return to work phase post burnout. The aim of the research is to look at the narratives and stories people tell about their experiences of returning to work after burning out, with emphasis on giving participants a voice to share

Genevieve Shanahan @GenShanahanm Grenoble École de Management (GEM) Etudiante PhD Genevieve Shanahan is a PhD student at the Grenoble Ecole de Management, where her research concerns alternative forms of markets and organizations. She is currently working on projects regarding the platform workers and cooperative networks.