Heidi Larson

Why you should listen

Heidi J. Larson is anthropologist and founding Director of The Vaccine Confidence Project at the WHO Centre of Excellence. An internationally recognized leader working to address global vaccine hesitancy, Larson's research focuses on the analysis of social and political factors that can affect uptake of health interventions and influence policies. Her interest is centered on risk and rumor management -- from the clinical trials stage to the market delivery stage -- and on building public trust.

Previously, Larson led Global Immunisation Communication at UNICEF, chaired GAVI's Advocacy Task Force and served on the WHO SAGE Working Group on vaccine hesitancy. She also served on the FDA Medical Countermeasure Emergency Communication Expert Working Group and as principal investigator of the EU-funded Ebola Vaccine Deployment, Acceptance and Compliance (EBODAC) project in Sierra Leone. Her current academic appointed roles include Professor of Anthropology, Risk and Decision Science, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine; Associate Professor, Department of Global Health, at the University of Washington; and Fellow at the Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security.