Adjunct Professor, 
Dr Vlassoff worked for 17 years with the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Suriname and Washington, D.C. She has also held key posts in the International Development Research Centre, Canada, and in the Canadian International Development Agency.
Dr Vlassoff has a PhD in economics/demography from the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, University of Pune, where she studied in the 1970s. She has published over 60 books and articles in peer-reviewed journals, and has recently published a book, Gender Equality and Inequality in Rural India: Blessed with a Son (Palgrave Macmillan) on her three-decade study of women’s reproductive health, social and economic empowerment in an Indian village. A Canadian citizen, Dr Vlassoff splits her time between Canada and Costa Rica.