UCLouvain - ELIC

Education

2005: PhD in Science (geography), Université catholique de Louvain (UCL): “Impacts of land use change on mosquito-borne diseases in northern Thailand”.
2000: Licence en géographie [master degree in geography], UCL. Thesis: “Land cover changes in the Zambezi valley: the Lusitu area. Analysis by remotely sensed data and aerial photography” [in French].

Employement history

2015-current: professor, UCL, School of Geography, Georges Lemaîre Center for Earth and Climate research
2007-2015: assistant professor (chargée de cours), UCL, Department of Geography.
2007: adjunct professor, Facultés Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix, Namur, Department of Geography
2005-2007: research assistant for the EDEN project, UCL, Department of Geography: Emerging Diseases in a Changing European Environment (Horizontal Integration Team: Environmental Change.). EDEN is a consortium of 48 institutions from Europe and Africa.
2000-2005: research assistant for the RISKMODEL project, UCL, Department of Geography: Predicting the risks of mosquito-borne diseases from land use change. In collaboration with: Royal Institute for the Tropics (Amsterdam), Manchester University, The University of Sheffield, The Natural History Museum (London), Chiang Mai University.

Funding

2020-2023: Belspo/BRAIN: B@SEBALL Biodiversity at School Environments Benefits for ALL. Coordinator: H. Keune (UA) (638 045 €).
2020-2025: ARES-PDR: Socio-eco-epidemiology of ticks, tick-borne parasites, acaricide resistance, and residual effects to acaricides in tropical Ecuadorian livestock: environmental, animal and public health impacts South Coordinator Richar Rodriguez Hidalgo, Central University of Ecuador.
2019-2020: Belspo/STEREOIII: Use of Satellite Data to Improve Effectiveness of Humanitarian Operations: Systematic Review. Coordinators: D.Guha-Sapir and J. van Loenhout.
2019-2023: ARES-PDR: Analysis and management of patients with distinct clinical presentation of malaria. Coordinators: J.-P. Coutelier (UCLouvain), N. Rujeni (University of Rwanda) (499 990 €).
2018-2022: EU COST: Member of the AIM COST action: Aedes Invasive Mosquitoes. Leader: A. della Torre (Università di Roma Sapienza).
2017-2019: ESA: Earth-System Data Cube: Implementation. Coordinators: Brockman consult GMBH, Max Planck Institute. Collaborator to D. Guha Sapir (UCL-CRED) in “Champion User” case study.
2017-2020: FNRS-FRQ: Natural and anthropogenic climate changes in boreal environments : specificities and impacts on the human ecosystem. Coordinator: Anne de Vernal (UQAM)
2017-2020: Action de Recherche Concertée (UCL) : Animal behaviour in the Anthropocene : learning as a key driver of evolution and adaptation. Coordinator: Hans van Dyck (UCL)
2017-2020: Fonds de Recherche Fondamentale Stratégique, Walloon Institute for Sustainable Development: Mapping the transition toward sustainable livestock production systems. Coordinator: M. Gilbert, ULB.
2013-2016: Fonds de la Recherche Fondamentale Collective: Mapping People and Livestock, Coordinator: M. Gilbert, ULB.
2013: Belgian Federal Public Planning Service, Science Policy, STEREOII programme, BUSHTICK: Changing farming, bush encroachment, and tick-borne disease risk in Southern Norway, Coordinator: S. Vanwambeke. Partners: S. Jore, Norwegian Veterinary Inst., B. Johansen, NORUT.
2012-2016: UCL, Fonds spéciaux de recherche, Spatial distribution of 3 zoonotic diseases in Belgium: epidemiological and environmental factors. PI: S. Vanwambeke, A. Robert.
2010: FP7 Cooperation, Health, Collaborative project (Appel: FP7-HEALTH-2010-single-stage; Work programme topics: HEALTH.2010.2.3.3-1) EDENext Biology and control of vector-borne infections in Europe. Coordinator: Dr. R. Lancelot (CIRAD) 46 partners. (S. Vanwambeke: deputy lead, modelling).
2010: Belgian Federal Public Planning Service, Science Policy, STEREOII programme, TICKRISK: Assessing ecological suitability for the spread of Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus in West Africa. Coordinator: S. Vanwambeke. Partners: M. Madder (ITM), A. Estrada-Peña (U. Zaragoza).
2008: Belgian Federal Public Planning Service, Science Policy, STEREOII programme, MULTITICK Multiscale and multisensory modelling of the spatial distribution of tick-borne diseases. Sole PI: S. Vanwambeke.
2008: UCL, Fonds spéciaux de recherche, multiresolution study of environmental risk factors for tick-borne diseases. Sole PI: S. Vanwambeke.

Grants and awards

2018-2019: FNRS-FAPESP cooperation agreement with Dr. P. Schimit, UNINOVE (Sao Paulo). Modelling vector-borne diseases with the support of empirical data.
2008: “Bourse d’excellence Wallonie-Bruxelles”, French-speaking Community Government,
2008: Fulbright Commission for Educational Exchange between the United States of America, Belgium, and Luxembourg, scholar grant for a stay at the Asia-Pacific Institute Tropical Medicine and Infectious Diseases (University of Hawai’i).
2008: National Science Fondation-IGERT program at the University of Hawai’i , grant for a research stay
2008: Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique, travel grant for a research stay at the Asia-Pacific Institute Tropical Medicine and Infectious Diseases (University of Hawai’i).
2008: French-speaking Community Government in the frame of bilateral agreements with the Latvian government. Travel grant for a research stay in Riga.
2007: Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique, travel grant for a research stay at the Environmental Change Institute, Oxford University.

Experience abroad

2018-2019:Visiting research scholar at CIESIN (Center for International Earth Science Information Network) and E3B (Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology), Columbia University, New York, USA
2017: Teaching mission (ARES-CDD) Cochabamba, Bolivia
2011: Field work in Benin
2008: Visiting Fulbright scholar at the Asia-Pacific Institute Tropical Medicine and Infectious Diseases (University of Hawai’i).
2007: Academic visitor at the Environmental Change Institute, Oxford University Centre for the Environment, Oxford University.
March 2003: Field work in Thailand: (land tenure survey, land cover map validation, RISKMODEL workshop).
March-April 2002: Field work in Thailand: (socio-economic household survey, land cover map validation).
May-June 2001: Field work in Thailand: (socio-economic household survey, data collection).

Professional services and memberships

Member of the Academy for Overseas Sciences
Member of the National Comittee of Geography
Chair of the School of Geography (2015-2018)
Fulbright Alumni Association of Belgium and Luxembourg
Fulbright selection comittee
Ecohealth International Association
Steering comittee of BeWise association (Belgian Women in Science)
Review Editor for Ecohealth Journal
Reviewer for: Ecohealth; WHO Dengue Bulletin; Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment; Télédétection; International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation; International Journal of Health Geographics; Cybergéo; Acta Tropica; Ticks and tick-borne diseases; International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health; Medical and Veterinary Entomology; Journal of Medical Entomology; Parasites & Vectors; PNAS; PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases; Wetlands Ecology and Management; Geospatial health; Acarologia; International journal of environmental research and public health, Nature Scientific Data, Environment Research, Future microbiology, International Journal for Parasitology, Bioscience

Teaching
Université catholique de Louvain

LGEO1252: Field work
LGEO1321 : Rural geography and health geography
LGEO1341 : Statistical modelling in Geography
LGEO1342 : Geographical Information Systems
LGEO2130 : Fundamentals of geographical and environmental modelling
LGEO2230 : Medical geography
LGEO2270 : Field work
LGEO2400 : Internships
WMPMH2204: Impact of environment on health in developing countries with disease mapping and multilevel analysis methods

2007-2011

LGEO1381: Personal project

2007: Facultés Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix, Namur. Courses: Advanced GIS and thematic cartography; Spatial Modelling and GIS

Menu

Sophie Vanwambeke

elic | Louvain-la-Neuve