Professor Wendy Brown

Wendy Brown is Professor of Physical Activity and Health at the School of Human Movement, University of Queensland. Since training as a teacher in physical and health education many years ago, Professor Brown has had a diverse career path which has involved working in secondary and tertiary education in both the UK and Australia, and in private and public health sector health promotion. She has an honours degree in Biological Sciences (human physiology) from the University of Birmingham and a masters degree in Human Biology, as well as teaching qualifications in health and physical education from Loughborough in the UK. Her PhD in exercise physiology was completed at the University of Newcastle (NSW).

Prior to her move to Queensland she was the Director of the Research Institute for Gender and Health at the University of Newcastle, where she managed the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health.

Research Interests

Professor Brown's current research interests focus on health promotion and on the prevention and management of chronic illness, from a population health perspective. The current high burden of illness which is attributable to inactivity and overweight in Australia is the major target of her work. To date, much of her research has focussed on women, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, who typically have very low levels of physical activity. Measurement of physical activity, and the links between physical activity and all aspects of health and wellbeing are a strong focus of her work. Professor Brown was a principal investigator on the Queensland Health-funded, 10,000 Steps Rockhampton project, which aimed to increase the levels of physical activity in an entire community of about 60,000 people.

Professor Brown is also a principal investigator for the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health, which is tracking the health of about 40,000 women from all walks of life in all Australian States and Territories. Her main focus in this study is on issues relating to the role of physical activity and weight management in the prevention and management of chronic disease.