Maia Ambegaokar

Maia Ambegaokar has a diverse and extensive work experience spanning over several decades. Maia started their career in 1984 as the Public Affairs Director for Planned Parenthood, where they developed and directed a women's reproductive rights advocacy program. During their time at Planned Parenthood, they collaborated with the Board and Executive Director to develop and implement a successful strategy that garnered support from various stakeholders.

In 1988, Ambegaokar joined the Peace Corps as a volunteer, serving until 1991. Following their time in the Peace Corps, they worked as a Management Consultant, Evaluation Specialist, and Strategy Adviser in various consulting and project roles from 1986 to 2007.

From 1996 to 2007, Ambegaokar held multiple roles at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, including Organiser DrPH, Organiser MSc Health Systems Management, and Research Fellow. Maia played a crucial role in teaching family planning programming, health sector management, and evaluation. Additionally, they assessed the School's teaching of evaluation and human resources for health.

In 2008, Ambegaokar joined the World Health Organization, where they climbed the ranks, eventually becoming a Health Systems Adviser, Health Management Specialist, and Technical Adviser. In their leadership role, they directed a global program for technical assistance and consulting to national governments. Maia chaired a Technical Committee and led a change process to update and roll out an online platform supporting participatory health policy in low- and medium-income countries. Maia served in this role until 2012.

Ambegaokar's career continued with positions at Abt Associates - Australia as a Strategic Policy & Planning Adviser in Papua New Guinea's National Department of Health from September 2013 to February 2014. Maia later worked at Abt Associates from July 2015 to July 2017 as the Director of Specialist Health Service.

In 2018, Ambegaokar joined Social Ventures Australia as the Director of Consulting & Health Sector Lead, a position they held until July 2020.

Most recently, Ambegaokar has been working as the Lead for Inclusive Genomics - Centre for Population Genomics at both the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, starting in August 2020.

Maia Ambegaokar's education history includes a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the London Business School. Maia also obtained a Master of Science (MSc) in Medical Demography from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London. Prior to that, Maia completed their Bachelor's degree in Government from Cornell University. The exact start and end dates for each program are not provided.