Jessica Malaty Rivera

Jessica Malaty Rivera is an internationally recognized infectious disease epidemiologist and science communicator. She has dedicated the last 15 years of her career to emerging infectious disease surveillance, public health policy, and vaccine advocacy. Her specialty is in translating complex public health science into impactful, judgement-free, and accessible information for wide audiences. She is passionate about diversity in STEM and committed to promoting equity and fair representation in and through her work.

She is a Research Fellow at Boston Children’s Hospital Innovation & Digital Health Accelerator, a Researcher at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, and a Senior Science Communication Advisor at the deBeaumont Foundation. Rivera also dedicates several hours a week to promoting science literacy and debunking misinformation on social media and serves as the Chair of the Committee of Scientific and Medical Advisors for the nonprofit Vaccinate Your Family.

In 2021, Rivera was named one of the "World’s 50 Greatest Leaders" by Fortune Magazine for her work on COVID-19 research and data communication and in 2022, she was named one of the Top 50 Leaders in Digital Health by Rock Health. In 2023, she was named a Fierce 50 Social Impact Honoree, and in 2024, Rivera was nominated for her first Peabody Award as the host of the COVID Tracking Project Podcast.

Currently, Rivera is the Executive Director of the Infodemiology Initiative at The Public Good Projects, a Research Fellow at Boston Children's Hospital Innovation & Digital Health Accelerator, and a doctoral student researcher at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security. In between her day jobs and being a full-time mother to three little kids, she also dedicates several hours a week to promoting science literacy and debunking misinformation on Instagram and on Substack.

Rivera earned her Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Studies at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine. She earned her Master Of Science in Biohazardous Threat Agents and Emerging Infectious Diseases from Georgetown University, School of Medicine.