Harvard Public Health NOW

Leaning Named Director of FXB Center for Health and Human Rights

Jennifer Leaning, (pictured at left), François-Xavier Bagnoud Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights, has been named director of the University's François-Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center for Health and Human Rights at HSPH. Leaning was chosen after an international search for a successor to Jim Yong Kim. She assumed her position on January 1.

In an announcement in the Harvard Gazette, Steven E. Hyman, provost of Harvard University, said: "Jennifer's experience on the ground in hotspots from Afghanistan to Somalia gives her a unique perspective on the connection between human rights and public health. We are excited to think about the ways in which the FXB Center and its commitment to children's health will evolve under her leadership."

The FXB Center was founded in 1993 with the support of philanthropist Albina du Boisrouvray. HSPH Dean Julio Frenk expressed gratitude to du Boisrouvray for her generous support of the center, which places special attention on the rights of children: "The FXB Center represents an extraordinary commitment to improving the lives of children living in vulnerable circumstances around the globe. I am confident that Dr. Leaning will increase that commitment and strengthen the center's sense of mission."

--Photo courtesy of Jennifer Leaning.