Jessica Kirk

Jessica Kirk is a Lecturer in Politics & International Relations at Monash University’s School of Social Sciences, and an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow. She holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Queensland and previously worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Griffith University’s Centre for Governance and Public Policy.

Education:

• PhD in International Relations, University of Queensland
• Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Griffith University

Research Focus: Global health politics, health security, contested expertise in emergencies, and misinformation. Her book More than a Health Crisis (MIT Press, 2023) examines the US response to the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak. Current projects include an ARC Discovery Project on pandemic expertise during COVID-19 and an ARC DECRA project on managing health misinformation globally.

Key Projects:

• The Politics of Expertise during COVID-19 (2022–2025): Analyzing federal responses across four countries.
• Global Management of Health (Mis)Information (2025–2028): Evaluating global initiatives to combat health misinformation.

Awards: Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship.

Advising & Grants: Supervises PhDs in global health, non-traditional security, and misinformation. Collaborates with Griffith University and international partners on pandemic governance and policy analysis.