Professor Linda Bennett is a Professor of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in the Gender and Women’s Health Unit, Nossal Institute for Global Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, within the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne. A medical anthropologist with over 25 years of experience, she holds a PhD and a Master's degree (coursework) from the University of Queensland, and a Bachelor's degree with Honours from Griffith University. Her research specializes in sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), gender-based violence (GBV), health equity and inclusion, reproductive cancers (particularly HPV and cervical cancer), infertility and childlessness, adolescent health and early motherhood, HIV/AIDS and STIs, family planning, abortion, sexual violence, domestic violence, reproductive coercion, stigma in health care, cultural safety, patient and medical education, and comprehensive SRH education. Bennett's work emphasizes mixed-methods approaches to generate evidence for policy briefs, patient education, medical education, health communications, and translational outcomes, often engaging women, adolescents, and SRH care providers in co-creation processes for health equity. She has extensive fieldwork experience in Indonesia, Fiji, Malaysia, Singapore, Botswana, and Australia's diverse communities, focusing on culturally safe SRH care for vulnerable populations.

Throughout her career, Bennett has held prestigious appointments, including an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (2010-2014) for 'Compromised Fertility in Contemporary Indonesia', a VicHealth Victorian Public Health Fellowship (2004-2009), an ARC Discovery Grant (2006-2009) for 'Ambivalent Adolescents in Indonesia', and a La Trobe University Postdoctoral Fellowship (2002-2004). She serves as Head of Education and Learning in the Maternal, Sexual and Reproductive Health unit and as an expert advisor on WHO Technical Advisory Groups for Action Plans for Cervical Cancer Elimination in the South-East Asian and Western Pacific Regions. Key publications include the co-edited book 'Cancer and the Politics of Care: Inequalities and Interventions in Global Perspective' (2023); 'Mother-daughter relationships as a health asset in Indonesia’s pilot HPV vaccination programme: a cross-sectional study' (2025); 'Unpacking cervical cancer stigma in healthcare: lessons learnt from Indonesian patients and health professionals' (2025); 'Indonesian Mothers’ Experience of Their Daughter’s HPV Vaccination' (2024); and 'Infertility in the Pacific: A crucial component of the sexual and reproductive health and rights agenda' (2024). She has collaborated with DFAT/AusAID, UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, and governments, contributing to policy, capacity building, and grants such as the Australia-Indonesia Institute Grant. Bennett supervises postgraduate students on SRHR and GBV in Asia and the Pacific, advancing global health equity through research training and interdisciplinary projects.

Professional Email: lbennett@unimelb.edu.au