Dr. Caroline Bulstra

Dr. Caroline Bulstra is a veterinarian and epidemiologist working at the intersection of global health, planetary health and health systems. She is currently based at the Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management at Erasmus University Rotterdam, where she researches how nature-based solutions can restore ecosystems while improving human health.

Her work focuses on generating evidence that can inform how societies respond to complex health and environmental challenges. She combines epidemiological methods, geospatial modelling and quasi-experimental approaches to study interventions in real-world settings and understand what works, for whom and under what conditions. Across her work, she has focused on how evidence can move beyond academic research to inform decision-making, institutional change and practical action.

Previously, Caroline was an NWO Rubicon Research Fellow and worked at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where she served as Associate Director of the Health Systems Innovation Lab. She has also held research and leadership roles at the Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Heidelberg University, including as Group Lead for Global Health Systems and Planetary Health. She has collaborated with international organisations including the World Bank, World Health Organization, UNAIDS and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as well as with governments, academic institutions and community-based organisations across Europe, sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Her research has been published in leading journals including The Lancet HIV, The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, Nature Communications and PLOS Medicine.

Caroline holds a PhD in Epidemiology and Global Health and a Master of Health Sciences in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from Erasmus University Rotterdam, as well as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Utrecht University.