Laurie Brown is a Professor and Deputy Director of IGPA and co-convenor of NATSEM at the University of Canberra. Laurie is one of Australasia’s leading health geographers and modellers and has over 25 years' experience in health, ageing and disability policy and practice and researching the impacts of demographic, social and economic change. She has an academic background in health geography, population studies, epidemiology, health economics and health services research.

Laurie is playing a leading role in the development and application of dynamic and spatial (micro-) simulation models and the use of micro-data for investigating policy issues in health, disability, ageing and caring in Australia and internationally.

Her work includes a focus on the impacts of chronic disease especially dementia and type 2 diabetes and the role that trends in mid-life risk factors will play in the burden of disease over the next 30-40 years; Population ageing, socio-economic and health impacts of demographic change and well-being of older persons; Socio-economic and health disadvantage in Indigenous Australians; and economic

Laurie’s work is recognised for its emphasis on the social determinants of health framework and the 'Health in All Policies' approach.