Researcher Leandro Garcia, Associate Professor of Complex Systems in Public Health at Queen’s University Belfast, UK, will be at UFMG in September as a guest of the FUNDEP/IEAT Short-Term Chair Program. He will be hosted at UFMG by Professor Amélia Augusta de Lima Friche, from the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at UFMG, who will be his host during his stay.

At the university, he will give the lecture Navigating Complexity: Trajectory and Reflections on Systemic Thinking in Public Health  on September 15th at 2:30 PM in Auditorium 1 of the Faculty of Economic Sciences (FACE/UFMG). The lecture is open to the public, and participants will receive a certificate upon prior registration through the Even3 platform.

Systems thinking in Public Health

How can systems thinking contribute to research and practice in Public Health? This is one of the questions that will guide Leandro Garcia’s lecture at UFMG. During the event, the professor will discuss how systems thinking can function as an effective lens for analyzing complex problems in a more holistic and dynamic way, especially those related to health.

Drawing on examples from his research career, the professor will discuss how conventional frameworks may be insufficient to address complex phenomena such as population aging, transformations in urban environments, and climate change. The presentation will also cover the epistemological, methodological, and practical implications of considering contemporary societies as complex systems in which different elements and processes interact and influence the health conditions of populations and the planet itself.

By exploring these issues, the conference aims to contribute to reflection on new ways of investigating and addressing challenges in Public Health and Planetary Health, considering the complexity of the relationships between society, environment, and health.

About the guest

Leandro Garcia is an associate professor of Complex Systems in Public Health at the Centre for Public Health, Queen’s University Belfast, in the United Kingdom. He has 14 years of experience in developing and applying systems thinking and complex systems science methods to research and address challenges related to public and planetary health.

He is a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Complex Systems and Network Science for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases. He has also served as a consultant for international and national organizations, including the World Health Organization. In 2025, he was included by Clarivate in the list of Highly Cited Researchers, in the interdisciplinary category.