Emeritus Professor Julie Byles AO B.Med PhD FAAHMS AAG Fellow has had a long career as an academic with the University of Newcastle and the Hunter Medical Research Institute. She was a founding investigator and a director of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health, following the oldest cohort from age 70 to 100+. Her work as an epidemiologist and gerontologist has taken her around the world training clinicians and scientists and advocating for healthy ageing, preventive health care, and aged care.

Julie has held local, national, and international roles in the International Clinical Epidemiology Network, the International Gerontology and Geriatrics Association, the International Longevity Centres Global Alliance (immediate past co-President), and has worked with the World Health Organization in various advisory roles. Julie is a Fellow and Life Member of the Australian Association of Gerontology, and was National President from 2011-2013. She is also a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Science.

As a clinical epidemiologist, Julie’s interests are in risk determination, health assessment, other health care evaluation, and measurement of health outcomes. As a Gerontologist her interests in ageing include the role of health and long term care services, preventive activities, and treatments in maintaining quality of life for older people. She is currently serving on the Lancet Commission for Long-term Care.

In her “retirement” Julie wanted to increase her engagement with the local community, so she took on the lead of the Hunter Ageing Alliance. She was named the City of Newcastle’s Senior Citizen of the Year for 2024.