Catherine Linard

Catherine Linard is a Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Namur, affiliated with the Institute of Life-Earth-Environment. She specializes in spatial epidemiology, integrating GIS, remote sensing, and statistical modeling to study vector-borne and zoonotic diseases such as malaria, dengue, and avian influenza. Her work focuses on human population distribution, urban expansion in Africa, and the health implications of demographic shifts. She co-leads the WorldPop project, producing high-resolution population maps for African countries.

Education:

• BSc in Geography, Université Catholique de Louvain (2003)
• MSc in Geography, Université Catholique de Louvain (2005)
• PhD in Sciences (Geography), Université Catholique de Louvain (2009)

Research Interests: Spatial epidemiology, health geography, human population mapping, GIS applications, and disease modeling. Her current projects include predicting viral transmission in Rwanda, malaria risk mapping in Senegal, and flood crisis management using Earth observation data.

Projects:

• WorldPop consortium (global population mapping)
• FLOWS project (flood crisis management)
• PRD-ZoonVir (wildlife-human viral transmission)

Grants & Awards: Wiener-Anspach Foundation postdoctoral fellowship, FNRS/BELSPO funding, and leadership roles in international research networks.

Labs/Teams: Spatial Epidemiology Lab (SpELL), WorldPop consortium, and interdisciplinary teams addressing urban health and environmental crises.