Dr Virginie Le Masson is a Research Fellow and co-Director of the Centre for Gender and Disaster at UCL’s Institute of Risk and Disaster Reduction. Geographer by training, her research looks at gender inequalities and violence-related risks in places affected by environmental changes and disasters. Her recent studies focused on gender-based violence affecting the resilience of women and girls in the Sahel region.

Virginie is also a Research Associate with the Overseas Development Institute, a development think tank based in London, where she worked for almost 5 years on resilience-related projects. She regularly collaborates with grassroot organisations in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia to conduct field-based research and explore ways to integrate gender equality in both development and humanitarian interventions. In 2017, she co-edited a book (published by Routledge) with Prof. Susan Buckingham on the importance to address climate change with attention to gender relations and power relationships. She is leading the Monitoring and Evaluation of GRRIPP.