Melody Ding (丁玎) is a professor at the Sydney School of Public Health and the University of Sydney. She dedicates her research across a broad spectrum of unique yet interrelated topics involving physical activity, social well-being, behavioural epidemiology and chronic disease prevention research, evidenced by more than 200 published papers in reputable academic journals (e.g., The Lancet, the BMJ, JACC, Plos Medicine) and more than 16000 citations. She led the 2016 and 2021 Lancet Series on Physical Activity and has been enthusiastically advocating for equal access to an active lifestyle. Melody was the recipient of the 2018 NSW Young Tall Poppy of the Year, the 2019 Australian Museum Eureka Prize Emerging Leader in Science, and the 2021 Ministerial Award for Rising Star in Cardiovascular Disease Research. She was named in 2022 as Australia’s Top 20 scientists under 40. Her work has informed policies, guidelines, and practices and has received extensive media coverage around the world.

Course: Sports Epidemiology