Thought Leadership & Media

My work and perspective have been featured in leading media outlets, including CBS 60 Minutes, Bloomberg, Devex, NPR, Forbes, Newsy, MIT Tech Review, Nonprofit Chronicles, WebMD, Project Syndicate, and Scientific American. Selected pieces are featured below. For media inquiries, speaking engagements, or collaboration opportunities, please contact me.

PERSPECTIVES

How the MAHA Commission Can Improve U.S. Life Expectancy

U.S. life expectancy has inched back up to 78 years - but still trails Japan by nearly seven. Addressing economic inequality is essential.

Think Global Health

The Radical Potential of Education

Three Key Principles for Equitable Education Systems from a conversation with Stacey Abrams, Torbjörn Pettersson, Karla Rax, David Sengeh, and Thoai Ngo.

Population Council

Bad COVID Public Health Messaging Is Blocking Our Path To A “New Normal”

But smarter communications from health agencies can improve the road ahead

Scientfic American

Forecasting Infectious Diseases - Artificial Intelligence Can Help

The high potential of deep learning for forecasting the spread and burden of infectious diseases needs urgent attention.

Journal of Urban Health

To Protect Access To Medication Abortion In The US, Make The Misoprostol-Only Regimen A Reality

If our nation is truly committed to protecting abortion access in America, it should pursue adoption of the misoprostol-only regimen.

Health Affairs

The gendered and public health consequences of anti-Asian racism in America

Racialized gender-based violence has a massive impact on public health.

BMJ Global Health

We Need a Pro-Poor and Pro-Black Response to COVID-19

The pandemic presents an opportunity to start tackling the persistent health and economic inequities that exist in the US.

Think Global Health

We Need To Bring Back The Swiss Cheese Model Of Pandemic Response

The "Swiss Cheese Model," a systems approach that builds layers of defense to mitigate adverse effects and prevent deaths, to reset its #COVID19 strategy.

Health Affairs

Unlocking Girls Potential

Giving girls the skills and knowledge they need to become productive women who can participate in the twenty-first-century economy empowers them in all aspects of their lives.

Project Syndicate

Bridging Health Gaps With Inclusive Urbanization

It is time to reimagine and embrace an inclusive urbanization approach that can be integrated into global health policies.

Think Global Health

Making Open Data a Reality

Researchers themselves must embrace data sharing, which means ensuring that they have the right information and incentives.

Project Syndicate

Rethinking the role of demographers in times of crisis

What is the role of demographers during pandemics? And how can that role evolve to provide relevant real-time guidance to decision-makers?

Population & Development Review

MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

U.S. birth rate hovers above historic low

U.S. birth rates have hit a historic low—just 1.6 children per woman. I joined CBS 60 Minutes to unpack what’s really driving the decline and how the U.S. can better support people who want to start or grow their families.

CBS 60 Minutes

CDC's New COVID Rules Mark Change in the Pandemic, How We Live

I spoke with WebMD about how the new CDC COVID-19 guidance is an example of the agency giving up on the pandemic.

WebMD

Ngo stresses importance of supporting youth worldwide during lecture at School of Social Work

“Ngo has helped develop a formula that gives children a chance to choose their own path while giving them better access to health, education and critical thinking skills ...”

UNC News

What does rapid population growth mean for the world’s poorest continent?

“Population dynamics such as increasing urbanisation and migration are reshaping where people live – and why – and impacting the resiliency of communities.”

GEOGRAPHICAL

Double Agents in Global Health

“I approach my work in #globalhealth with a keen awareness of the instinctive resourcefulness of the global poor and a mind-set of the infinite possibilities they are capable of imagining”

Forbes

6 tips for designing programs to better serve girls

“…We need to invest more in high quality and rigorous research in order to better understand what works and what doesn't work to help guide investment, program, and policies…”

Devex

HIV Could Infect 1400 Infants Every Day due to Disruptions in Aid from the US

"I am deeply concerned that progress in disease eradication, poverty reduction, and gender equality is at risk of being reversed. Without urgent action, preventable deaths will rise, more people will fall into poverty..."

MIT Tech Review

Burnout, A Silent Crisis In Global Health

In summary, as Thoai Ngo eloquently put it, “the global health workforce is our number one asset during Covid-19 and beyond; now more than ever, we need to invest in their well-being for the long run.”

Forbes

All about Love. Geschichten von der Liebe.

For Valentine’s Day, I sat down with ORF to discuss how major demographic trends - like urbanization and shifts in education - are shaping dating habits and preferences for the 2.2 billion Gen Zers.

ORF