Professor Cécile Knai

LSHTM Deputy Director, Health Improvement Email Cécile

Cécile is Professor of Public Health Policy, Head of Department of the Health Services Research and Policy Department, and Deputy Director Health Improvement on the NIHR Policy Innovation and Evaluation PRU. Her main research interests are in food policy and the commercial determinants of health (currently focusing on public private partnerships and food industry led self-regulation). She employs mixed-method policy analysis methods including qualitative approaches and systems thinking.

Cécile’s research focuses on England and Europe, such as a recent European Commission study on systems approaches to adolescent obesity, but also further afield. For example, she currently leads a study on the use of qualitative systems methods to examine food industry involvement in emergency food assistance in Lebanon. She holds various additional roles, such as invited expert for the WHO Economic and Commercial Determinants of Health committee. This role is all the more important given her leadership with colleague Professor Mark Petticrew in the current accreditation process of the LSHTM Commercial Determinants Research Group as a WHO Collaborating Centre on the Commercial Determinants of Health.