Professor Cesar Victora

Cesar Victora is an Emeritus Professor of Epidemiology at the Federal University of Pelotas (Brazil), who has held honorary positions at Harvard, Oxford, London, and Johns Hopkins Universities. His research focuses on maternal and child health, nutrition, birth cohort studies, health inequalities, and the evaluation of global health programs. Victora's findings have influenced global policy by recommending exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months and by creating growth standards based on breastfed children, both adopted by over 140 nations. His cohort studies with 40 years of follow-up underscore the critical importance of the first 1,000 days of life for long-term health and human capital. Victora is consistently recognized as one of the world’s highly-cited scientists. Other achievements include his roles as President of the International Epidemiological Association (2011-2014), as a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, recipient of the 2017 Canada Gairdner Global Health Award, and his election to the Royal Society in 2024.