Prof. Melody Ding

Associate Professor Melody Ding works in physical activity, behavioural epidemiology and chronic disease prevention research. She led the 2016 and 2021 Lancet Series on Physical Activity and Health and has been an enthusiastic advocate for equal access to an active lifestyle. Melody has published more than 200 journal articles and was the recipient of the 2018 NSW Young Tall Poppy of the Year, the 2019 Australian Museum Eureka Prize Emerging Leader in Science, and the 2021 Ministerial Award for Rising Star in Cardiovascular Disease Research. She was named in 2022 as Australia’s Top 20 scientists under 40. She is currently the co-editor in Chief for the Journal of Physical Activity and Health. Her work has informed policies, guidelines, and practices around the world and has received extensive media coverage around the world.

Keynote title: “Why investing in physical activity pays dividends: An interdisciplinary perspective”.

Assoc. Prof. Ding is probably the most credible scientist in the world when you are discussing about the burden of disease linked to inactivity. In fact, her works on health-care costing analysis are today the benchmark in the world… In this session Dr. Ding will explain in detail why investing in physical activity always pays dividends (best-buy), providing solid evidence from an interdisciplinary perspective…