Research

We work on the links between human behavior and human health with a focus on movement, access to health care, and the transmission and prevention of infectious diseases. Understanding the interactions that lead to disease emergence, transmission, and persistence allows us to develop interventions that directly target important underlying mechanistic processes. This approach has a powerful positive impact on the reduction and prevention of infectious diseases.

We explore the emergence of novel diseases as well as the determinants and consequences of long-standing health inequities. Over a decade ago, we developed the first direct application of satellite imagery towards mechanistic understanding of human infectious disease transmission in under-resourced populations, which informed targeted vaccination strategies. We’ve continued to advance the field by integrating unconventional data sources to improve our understanding of the processes underlying critical interactions in ecology, epidemiology, and behavior.