About
Robb Butler is a social scientist with 25 years international experience in public health, strategic planning, social protection, climate change and humanitarian assistance in developing and transitional states.
After an initial 13-year stint on community engagement programmes and initiatives in South- Southeast-Asia and Africa, Robb applied his expertise to driving demand for vaccination programmes in low and middle-income settings. On joining WHO in 2008, he led early work on vaccination hesitancy and developed a pivotal behavioural insights methodology for tailoring immunization programme delivery. In September 2022, he oversaw the launch of WHO’s first behavioural and social insights framework for health, and an accompanying WHO resolution – adopted by 53 Member States. He currently serves as the Director for Communicable Diseases, Environment and Health and WHO Special Representative for Climate Change and Health, having previously served as WHO’s Executive Director at the WHO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia. Robb has worked in over 40 low- and middle-income countries, for the World Bank, ADB, WHO, EC, UNDP, UNICEF, GFATM, SIDA/FPH, GAVI, OXFAM, PSI, SCF (US & UK), SGS and the Gates Foundation. He served as a lecturer, supervisor and advisor at the School of Global Health, University of Copenhagen, between 2004 and 2018.
Expertise: Climate and Health; Vaccine Hesitancy; Behavioural Insights; Immunization Programme Delivery and Assessment; Communicable Disease Prevention; Outbreak Response; Health Promotion, Strategic Communications