Bree Akesson

Dr. Bree Akesson is currently an Associate Professor at the Wilfrid Laurier University's Faculty of Social Work, where she is a Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in Global Adversity and Wellbeing. In 2001, she began her international career in the Peace Corps, working as a public health extensionist in East Africa. Since then, she has dedicated nearly two decades to work with children, families, and communities affected by poverty, war, and disaster. Dr. Akesson earned her undergraduate degree in Sociology from Columbia University, an MPH in Forced Migration and Health from the Mailman School of Public Health, a MSSW in Health, Mental Health, and Disabilities from Columbia University’s School of Social Work, and a PhD in social work from McGill University's School of Social Work. Dr. Akesson has worked in a variety of international settings in Africa (Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda), Asia (Afghanistan, Chechnya, Indonesia), Middle East (Israel, Lebanon, Palestine), Europe (Hungary, Sweden), and North America (Canada, United States). She has worked as a consultant for for the International Rescue Committee, Bernard van Leer Foundation, Consultative Group on Early Childhood Care and Development, USAID, UNICEF, and Save the Children. Her past research projects include an evaluation of psychosocial programs for children in Chechnya (2005) and northern Uganda (2008), a mapping of social work education in West and Central Africa (2014), a place-based study on the experiences of Palestinian children and families (2014), and an eight-country baseline study to determine child protection practices and social service workforce needs in southeast Europe (2015-2016). She is currently the principal investigator for two research projects with families displaced by the war in Syria. In addition to her research, Dr. Akesson a licensed social worker (LMSW), providing clinical support to children and families affected by trauma for the Child Psychiatric Epidemiology Group at the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene at New York State Psychiatric Institute.