Dr Nicola Hawley is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology (Chronic Disease) and Anthropology at the Yale School of Public Health. Her expertise is in the etiology and prevention of obesity-related chronic disease in resource-limited settings. Her work focuses predominantly on Pacific Islander populations although she has ongoing projects in several global settings. Methodically, Dr. Hawley uses a life course approach in her work, using cross-sectional and cohort studies as well as randomized controlled trials to understand the causes of illness and the critical periods of susceptibility. She is a mixed-methods expert and an advocate for community engaged approaches to research, intervention, and development of health policy.