Maxine Whittaker

Maxine Whittaker is a Professor and Dean of the College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences at James Cook University (JCU), Australia. She holds dual roles as Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Vector-Borne Diseases and Neglected Tropical Diseases and Co-Chair of the WHO Research Project Review Panel (RP2) on Reproductive Health. Her affiliations include JCU, the Queensland Government’s Biosecurity Ministerial Advisory Committee, and the Quadripartite One Health High-Level Expert Advisory Panel. She previously served as Dean at JCU (2016–2021) and held leadership positions in global health initiatives such as the Asia Pacific Malaria Elimination Network.

Whittaker holds advanced qualifications: MBBS, MPH, PhD, FAFPHM (Fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine), and GAICD (Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors). Her career spans over two decades of fieldwork in Bangladesh, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Papua New Guinea, and 10+ other countries. She specializes in operational research, health systems strengthening, and medical anthropology, focusing on One Health, sexual and reproductive health, and community-based interventions.

Her research interests emphasize scaling-up pilot programs into policy, particularly through Expandnet’s WHO-published frameworks. She has pioneered studies on community engagement in disease control (dengue, malaria, lymphatic filariasis) and led projects worth over $80M AUD. Whittaker advocates for integrating social sciences into malaria research and has championed digital health transformation, publishing on workforce capacity and data democratization.

Her leadership extends to global platforms: steering committee roles for the Global Fund’s Regional Artemisinin-Resistance Initiative, the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security, and the CSIRO Pandemic Preparedness Mission. She also mentors women scientists in tropical health through initiatives like Catalyse and the ASTMH Global Health Committee.

Whittaker’s awards include the Royal Australasian College of Physicians International Medal (2017). She is a co-editor of the Malaria Journal and serves on editorial boards for CABI One Health Resources and Public Health Action. Her work bridges clinical practice, policy, and community participation, with recent focus on pandemic preparedness and health equity in Australia’s remote regions.