The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the severe threat of infectious diseases, and climate change is intensifying this danger.
As a 2025 Schmidt Science Fellow, Gina will seek to understand how changing weather and extreme events like floods and droughts affect mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile virus and dengue.
By studying the genetic information of these viruses from past outbreaks and linking this to environmental information, Gina will examine how the environment influences pathogen evolution and whether extreme events are associated with more virulent pathogen strains.
Gina’s goal is to predict where and when future outbreaks might occur, enhancing preparedness and safeguarding public health.
Gina will pivot from Epidemiology to Genetics & Genomics