How do we turn global promises on NCDs and mental health into real change in our region?
Event
Pacific women’s health at the centre of climate debate ahead of COP31
News
The FoodSwitch data
Packaged food attribute data
The FoodSwitch database holds detailed nutrition and attribute information on individual packaged food products. The data is used for research and advocacy to influence government policy and industry practice toward improved food environments. It is also used by the various apps to help consumers make healthier food choices by offering accessible and clear information about the nutritional content of packaged foods. The database is continually updated, reflecting changes in food formulations and the introduction of new products – it is estimated that there is around 25% - 30% of product churn every 12 months. The data is utilised in various tools and apps to guide users towards healthier eating patterns, supporting public health initiatives and research on dietary habits and nutrition.
FoodSwitch: Tracking Food Data Across 17 Jurisdictions
AustraliaNew ZealandUnited KingdomSwedenFranceUSAMexicoBrazilChile
ChinaFijiHong KongIndiaKuwaitSouth A
Cardiovascular health
Research Program
Dr Astrid Poelman
Profile
Astrid Poelman is a Senior Research Fellow at The George Institute. She is a behavioural nutrition scientist with specific expertise in development and evaluation of community interventions, paediatric nutrition, consumer science, the role of sensory science to improve public health nutrition and translational nutrition science. She works with a wide range of stakeholders to facilitate adoption of research findings in practice and policy. She led the development and implementation of two nationally available programs (Taste & Learn™) for children in educational settings (primary schools and childcare) to support the development of lifelong healthy eating habits, in particular vegetable consumption. She has a strong research interest in preventive health interventions to reduce health inequities.
Astrid holds a PhD from Wageningen University (the Netherlands) investigating children’s sensory preferences to support increased vegetable consumption using product and behaviour-centred approaches. She is a Registered Nutritionist with the Nutrition Society of Australia.
Dr Susmita Chatterjee
Profile
Dr Susmita Chatterjee works at The George Institute for Global Health India as a Program Head of Health Economics. She has a PhD from the University of Calcutta, and is interested in investigating costing of health services, health financing, and economic evaluations.
She has worked on several health economics projects in the areas of mental health, diabetes, cholera, typhoid, tuberculosis and immunization. She was the recipient of Asia Fellows Award in 2008; Indo-US public health fellowship in 2013 and Wellcome Trust / DBT India Alliance Intermediate fellowship in Clinical and Public Health in 2017. She was the Core Costing Working Group member for preparing the costing manual on provider payment mechanism – an initiative by the Joint Learning Network (JLN), USA and the economics group member of TB MAC (Tuberculosis Modelling and Analysis Consortium).
Before joining The George Institute India, she worked as Associate Professor at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), New Delhi.
Dr Arpita Ghosh
Profile
Dr Arpita Ghosh works at the George Institute for Global Health India as a Head Biostatistics and Data Science. Arpita received her doctoral training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and post-doctoral training at the National Cancer Institute.
Her work involves quantitative research cutting across multiple areas of public health including childhood vaccination, nutrition, elderly health, and chronic diseases, particularly cancer. Arpita has extensive experience of working with secondary data sets and of conducting epidemiological studies and randomized trials. Her current research interests include causal inference for observational studies, adaptive trial designs for multi-stage studies, and record linkage.
Prior to joining The George Institute, Arpita was at the Public Health Foundation of India as a Research Scientist.
Climate justice at the heart of women’s health
Event
Executive leadership team
Our Executive Leadership Team is a dynamic group of professionals united by a shared commitment to innovation, integrity, and impact. Drawing on diverse expertise across health, research, and operations, they play a vital role in driving our mission forward. Together, they ensure that we deliver on our goals to improve global health and build stronger, healthier communities.
Bitesize: Why is eating less salt important for heart health
Podcast
Bitesize: What if we could switch the salt to reduce blood pressure?
Podcast
Sophia Zoungas
Profile
Professor Sophia Zoungas is Executive Director of The George Institute for Global Health Australia and a practising endocrinologist.
A clinician scientist and trialist, she is internationally recognised for her leadership in diabetes, cardiorenal health, and healthy ageing, and for research that has shaped clinical practice and public health policy globally.
Her work focuses on large-scale clinical trials and cohort studies addressing the prevention and management of chronic disease, with particular impact on global clinical guidelines for blood pressure and glucose control in diabetes.
Professor Zoungas has led major international initiatives, including the ADVANCE and ADVANCE ON studies, and serves as lead of the Australian Diabetes Clinical Quality Registry, which promotes best-practice diabetes care.
She is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences, with prior senior academic leadership roles at Monash University.