Nicola Hawley

Nicola Hawley is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology (Chronic Disease) at the Yale School of Public Health with a secondary appointment in the Department of Anthropology at Yale University. She serves as Associate Director for Dissemination and Implementation Science at the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation and is affiliated with the Yale Institute for Global Health and Yale Network for Global Non-Communicable Diseases.

Dr. Hawley is an internationally recognized expert in maternal and child health, with particular expertise in the developmental origins of obesity and related chronic diseases. Her interdisciplinary research bridges epidemiology, anthropology, and global health to examine how early life exposures during pregnancy, infancy, and childhood shape long-term health. She employs a life-course perspective and mixed-methods approaches across cross-sectional, cohort, and randomized controlled trial designs to identify critical windows for intervention. A hallmark of her work is the integration of community-engaged and culturally responsive strategies to address maternal and child health disparities in under-resourced and Indigenous settings.

Her research primarily focuses on Pacific Islander communities in Samoa, American Samoa, and the US, with additional collaborations in South Africa, Uganda, New Zealand, and the United States. Dr. Hawley's current research portfolio includes NIH- and PCORI-funded studies addressing gestational and Type 2 diabetes, prevention of excess gestational weight gain, childhood obesity, and cardiometabolic risk across generations. Her recent publications demonstrate strong emphasis on Samoan health issues, including studies on genetic adaptations, sleep patterns, mental health, and food security, with a consistent focus on culturally appropriate interventions and community engagement.

• Yale School of Public Health Teacher of the Year (2016)

As a mentor, Dr. Hawley plays a central role in training the next generation of US and global health scientists, serving as primary mentor on multiple NIH career development awards (K01, K99, F30, F31) focused on Pacific Islander health. She leads the Obesity, Lifestyle and Genetic Adaptations (OLaGA) Study Group, which uses a life course approach to understand the origins of obesity and related cardiometabolic diseases among Samoans and other Pacific Islanders.

Her laboratory work emphasizes community partnerships and capacity building, with core values centered on equity, community engagement, interdisciplinary collaboration, and mentorship. The OLaGA Study Group is driven by the belief that innovative research should not only advance scientific understanding but lead to tangible improvement in health outcomes for all, particularly for populations often neglected in public health and genetic research.