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Professor Gemma Sharp is an Adjunct Professor at Western Sydney University's School of Psychology and the founder and leader of the Body Image, Eating & Weight Disorders Research Program since 2018. She is currently an NHMRC Emerging Leadership 2 Fellow (2023-2028) and was previously an NHMRC Early Career Research Fellow (2018-2022). Her work spans academic research, clinical practice, and digital health innovation in the field of body image and eating disorders.
Professor Sharp holds an impressive educational background including a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Flinders University, a Masters in Oncology from the University of Cambridge, and multiple undergraduate degrees from the University of Adelaide in Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Immunology, Psychology, and Japanese language. Her research career has taken her across Australia, Japan, and the UK.
Her research program investigates factors leading to body image concerns and eating disorders across the age and gender spectrum, with a particular focus on innovative therapeutic interventions. She has pioneered digital mental health solutions including the JEM® chatbot for eating disorder prevention and ED ESSI® for early intervention. She also has a strong interest in the intersection of eating disorders and women's health, particularly during pregnancy and menopause, where she led the development of a world-first online educational resource addressing eating disorders during the menopause transition.
Professor Sharp has been recognized with over 65 awards throughout her career, including the prestigious Association for Psychological Science Janet Taylor Spence Award (2025) and being named a national finalist for the Eureka Prize for Emerging Leader in Science (2025). She was also named one of ABC Radio National's Top 5 Under 40 Scientists and has delivered a TED talk on body image issues.
As the Founding Director of the Consortium for Research in Eating Disorders (CoRe-ED), she has created a global network connecting nearly 1,000 researchers from 35 countries across 5 continents. Her work has significantly influenced national policy, playing key roles in both the National and Victorian State Eating Disorder strategies (2023/2024). She maintains an active clinical practice as a registered clinical psychologist and Credentialed Eating Disorder Clinician.
