Brown Bag Seminar: Could altruism end the HIV epidemic? Evidence from South Africa
Jacob Bor, ScD, is an associate professor in the departments of global health and epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health. His research applies the analytical tools of economics and data science to the study of population health, and his research interests include HIV treatment and prevention in southern Africa, structural causes of health disparities in the U.S., and intersections of health, politics, and development. Prior to his graduate training at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Bor worked with an HIV-prevention NGO in Botswana, Lesotho, and South Africa. He is a faculty affiliate of Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center and senior research at the Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office in South Africa.
Speaker Information
Jacob Bor
Organizers
From Signal to Noise: Addressing Multiplicity Using the Exposome-Neurodevelopment Example
Join us on Wednesday, October 8 for the Epidemiology Seminar Series, featuring Dr. Stefania Papatheodorou discussing From Signal to Noise: Addressing Multiplicity Using the Exposome-Neurodevelopment Example.
Abstract: In epidemiologic research, investigators frequently examine numerous concurrent environmental exposures and outcomes within a single study. However, the degree of multiplicity involved is often underreported or unclear. The question of how to appropriately handle multiplicity—whether during study design, statistical analysis, or in the communication of findings—remains a subject of considerable debate. This issue becomes even more pressing in exposome research, where the potential number of exposures is vast and continuously growing. Since causality cannot be reliably inferred solely from the presence of statistically significant associations, it is crucial to enhance transparency around multiplicity. Doing so helps mitigate the risk of spurious associations and strengthens the credibility of reported findings. This talk will explore these concepts through an example on ambient exposome and neurodevelopmental delays, and it will outline future directions to improve methodological rigor and reproducibility across life sciences.
Bio: Stefania Papatheodorou, MD, PhD, MSc, is an Associate Professor in Epidemiology at Rutgers School of Public Health and a trained obstetrician and gynecologist. Her research lies at the intersection of extreme weather, air pollution, pregnancy, and children’s health. She has been the primary investigator on multiple epidemiological studies examining the association between prenatal exposure to extreme weather, air pollutants, and adverse pregnancy and childhood outcomes. Her research utilizes a wide range of administrative data sources, such as electronic health records, birth registries, and claims data. She is currently focused on examining the effects of prenatal and early childhood exposure to extreme weather and air pollutants on children’s neurodevelopmental outcomes.
Speaker Information
Stefania Papatheodorou, MD, PhD, MSc
Organizers
Related Events
Pressure Points is a webinar series co-hosted by The Studio and Executive and Continuing Education at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health bringing you inside the business of health care.
With shifting demands, burnout, and evolving care models, how are health care organizations rethinking workforce strategy? Join this panel of leaders in workforce development, human resources, and academia as they share insights on building a more resilient, adaptive, and sustainable health care workforce.
Registerfor free to submit your questions.
An on-demand video will be posted after the event.
Designed for professionals navigating today’s evolving health care landscape, Pressure Points explores the industry’s most urgent challenges—from workforce shifts and financial pressures to leadership, technology, and innovation. Join leading experts for timely conversations on what’s shaping the business of health care now—and what lies ahead.
Speakers
Karen Donelan
Kara Greer
Joanne Pokaski
Moderator
About the Organizers
The Harvard Chan Studio is the hub for the School’s premier in-person and live-streamed events. We convene global leaders in health policy, advocacy, industry, and research for insightful conversations about public health’s most pressing challenges and most promising solutions.
Executive and Continuing Education
Strengthen your expertise and build new capabilities to address pressing healthcare and public health challenges. Learn from industry experts and esteemed Harvard faculty and join a global community of peers driven to creating a healthier world.
Prostate Cancer Screening: What’s Gone Wrong? What Can We Get Right?
Join us on Wednesday, October 29 for the Epidemiology Seminar Series, featuring Dr. Kevin Kensler discussing Prostate Cancer Screening: What’s Gone Wrong? What Can We Get Right?
Abstract: Prostate cancer screening is at a crossroads. Despite evidence that screening prostate-specific antigen (PSA) can reduce advanced disease and mortality, current practices too often overscreen older men while underserving those at highest risk. This seminar will examine where prostate cancer screening has gone wrong and highlight opportunities for more targeted, equitable approaches to early detection.
Bio: Kevin Kensler, ScD, MHS, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine and member of the Cancer Prevention and Control program at the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine. His research focuses on prostate cancer epidemiology, with emphasis on screening, disparities, survivorship, and molecular heterogeneity. He has examined how changes in screening guidelines have shaped trends in advanced disease, particularly across socioeconomic and racial groups, and uses large-scale population and clinical data to study risk and prognosis. Collectively, his research aims to guide policies and interventions that advance equitable and personalized approaches to prostate cancer prevention and early detection.
Speaker Information
Kevin Kensler, ScD, MHS
Organizers
Related Events
Virtues for Well-being: A Seminar with Dr. Richard Davidson
All are welcome to join us for the fourth installment in our seminar series on Wednesday, February 11th, 2026, from 1-1:50 PM, in FXB G12 or online.
Speaker Biography
Our speaker, Dr. Richard Davidson, is the William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Founder and Director of the Center for Healthy Minds. He is best known for his groundbreaking work studying emotion and the brain. A friend and confidante of the Dalai Lama, he is a highly sought after expert and speaker, leading conversations on wellbeing on international stages such as the World Economic Forum, where he serves on the Global Council on Mental Health. Time Magazine named Davidson one of “The 100 Most Influential People in the World” in 2006.
Speaker Information
Dr. Richard Davidson
Organizers
Virtues for Well-being: A Seminar with Dr. Richard Weissbourd
On Wednesday, November 12th, 2025, from 1-1:50 PM in FXB G12 and online, all are welcome to join us for the third installment in our Virtues for Well-being seminar series.
Speaker Biography
Dr. Richard Weissbourd is a senior lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His research centers on moral development, hope, vulnerability, and resilience in childhood, as well as parenting and effective schools and services for children. He directs the Making Caring Common Project, a national initiative promoting moral and social development in children, and he leads the Turning the Tide movement to reform college admissions by emphasizing ethical character and advancing equity. Dr. Weissbourd has founded several programs for children who are at risk, provided policy guidance on family and school reform, and written numerous award-winning publications and books.
Speaker Information
Dr. Richard Weissbourd
Organizers
The Science of Sustainable Giving: How Empathy and Generosity Support Health and Flourishing
Join us for the second seminar in our Virtues for Well-being series, taking place on Wednesday, October 15, from 1:00 to 1:50 p.m. in FXB G12 and online. Social psychologist Dr. Sara Konrath will present, “The Science of Sustainable Giving: How Empathy and Generosity Support Health and Flourishing.” All are welcome to attend! You must have an HUID or approved visitor’s pass to attend this event in-person.
Event Description
Many of us devote our time, energy, care, and resources to supporting others—whether through helping family and friends, volunteering in our communities, offering empathy in daily interactions, or giving financially. But what are the implications of these generous behaviors for our own well-being, social connections, and physical health? This talk explores the growing body of interdisciplinary research on empathy and generosity, focusing on how different forms of giving—emotional, practical, and financial—shape not only the lives of recipients but also the givers themselves. Drawing on findings from psychology, public health, and neuroscience, as well as new data from the 2025 World Happiness Report co-authored by Dr. Konrath, we will examine how and when generosity enhances flourishing. The session will offer guidance for how to give with intention, boundaries, and joy, with practical, evidence-based strategies for giving and caring in sustainable, rather than depleting, ways. By approaching empathy and generosity as both a science and an art, this talk invites attendees to reflect on their own giving practices and to discover how empathy and generosity—when wisely offered—can serve as powerful contributors to their own and others’ wellbeing.
Speaker Biography
Dr. Sara Konrath is a social psychologist and Director of the Interdisciplinary Program on Empathy and Altruism Research at Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research. Her research examines the development, benefits, and promotion of empathy, generosity, and social connection. She has documented generational trends in empathy and narcissism, and linked empathy and giving to well-being and health. Konrath has developed innovative digital tools to increase empathy and partnered with educators, physicians, fundraisers, dating apps, zoos, and museums to evaluate empathy-based interventions. She has published over 100 scientific papers and delivered 300+ presentations, including at SouthXSouthwest and the Aspen Ideas Institute. She is a co-author of the 2025 World Happiness Report, co-organizer of the annual Science of Philanthropy Initiative conference, and has been an editor for leading psychology and nonprofit studies journals. Her work is regularly featured in media outlets such as The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Time, The Atlantic, NPR, BBC, and CBC.
Speaker Information
Dr. Sara Konrath
Organizers
Finding Purpose in Stressful Times: Strengthening Well-Being in an AI-Transformed World
Presenting the “Virtues for Well-being” Seminar Series
We are excited to present “Virtues for Well-being”: a year-long seminar series exploring how core virtues—such as gratitude, kindness, compassion, and humility—promote psychological, physical, and social well-being. Throughout the year, we’ll delve into the science and practice of cultivating virtues across diverse contexts, discussing their definitions, measurement, and impacts on health outcomes at both the individual and societal level. This interdisciplinary series will bring together thought leaders and practitioners to examine evidence-based strategies and interventions that foster virtues, highlighting the dynamic relationship between individual and community flourishing. Join us to discover the transformative potential of virtues in building resilient, thriving communities.
We are delighted to launch this seminar series with Dr. Victor Strecher, Professor at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and a pioneering leader in health behavior, digital health communication, and well-being. Dr. Strecher’s seminar, titled “Finding Purpose in Stressful Times: Strengthening Well-Being in an AI-Transformed World”, will be held on Wednesday, September 24th, 2025, from 1-1:50 PM, both online and in person in room G12 of the FXB Building (located at 651 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA). It is free and open to the public.
Event Description
A large body of scientific evidence now demonstrates that a strong sense of purpose is associated with greater emotional regulation and resilience. Purpose as a health-related asset seems particularly important in our current times. In an era of social uncertainty and technological disruption, how do we not just survive but thrive? In this presentation, Dr. Strecher will explores how cultivating purpose serves as a protective factor for mental health and resilience, particularly as AI reshapes how we work and live. The relationship between technology and purpose is more dynamic than we might expect. Dr. Strecher will discuss the possibility that we can harness AI-driven technologies to enhance our sense of purpose and help us live more purposefully.
Speaker Biography
Victor J. Strecher, PhD, MPH, is Professor at the University of Michigan (UM) School of Public Health and Founder & CEO of Kumanu, Inc., a leading digital platform for intentional wellbeing. A national leader in behavior change and digital health, Dr. Strecher has reached millions of lives through pioneering ventures, including HealthMedia (acquired by Johnson & Johnson) and the UM Center for Health Communications Research. He is a widely recognized researcher, author, and public speaker, with multiple national and international awards, including two Smithsonian Awards and Innovator of the Year at UM. His recent online course, “Finding Purpose and Meaning in Life,” was ranked among the world’s top online courses by Inc. Magazine and has enrolled over 250,000 people. Dr. Strecher’s current work, including books, TED talks, and digital tools, continues to advance wellbeing and purpose on a global scale.
Speaker Information
Victor Strecher, PhD, MPH
Organizers
Center Member Research Presentation: Jukka-Pekka “JP” Onnela
Join us for a Center Member Research Presentation by Dr. Jukka-Pekka “JP” Onnela on Digital phenotyping. Following a brief presentation, there will be time for all participants to engage in a cross-disciplinary discussion with Dr. Onnela and each other.
Jukka-Pekka “JP” Onnela is Chair and Professor of Biostatistics in the Department of Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. He is also a Co-Director of the master’s program in Health Data Science, one of the three data science programs at the university. After completing his doctorate in Finland, he completed a research fellowship at the University of Oxford, was a Fulbright scholar at Harvard University, and a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School. His main interest is in developing models and methods in network science and digital phenotyping.
This event will be held in person in HSPH Bldg. 1, 1302 and via Zoom. Register here
Speaker Information
Organizers
Leadership Development to Advance Equity in Health Care
Join us for a webinar on the Leadership Development to Advance Equity in Health Care program, offered by Harvard Chan School Executive and Continuing Education.
Program Director Dr. Mary E. Fleming will share how this program equips participants to recognize, address, and dismantle health disparities. Through the program, participants will develop the leadership tools to identify and reform biased policies, foster inclusive environments, and champion health equity.
If you’re looking to advance equity in your community or practice, this webinar is a great opportunity to see how the program can support your goals.
