Dr Kirsten Macaitis is a Research Fellow in the Transfer Science Division at JBI within the School of Public Health at Adelaide University. She is an experienced researcher and educator whose interdisciplinary work bridges sociology, social policy, youth studies, and cultural analysis with applied evidence-based practice.  She collaborates with local and international partners to align evidence with practice needs, contributing to global health outcomes through applied research. At JBI, Kirsten supports Transfer Science and knowledge translation by strengthening evidence-to-action pathways through evidence-based resource development and stakeholder engagement.
 
Kirsten’s research focuses on strengthening the pathways between evidence, policy, and practice by improving how evidence is organised, translated, and mobilised for real-world use. Her current work includes methodological and systems-focused initiatives that support evidence-to-recommendation processes, enhance the usability of evidence resources through taxonomy and classification approaches, and align evidence products with external quality standards and indicators. She brings extensive experience in qualitative and mixed methods research, with particular interest in how social and structural conditions shape health, care, and service systems—especially for marginalised groups and diverse communities.
 
Kirsten has held academic and leadership roles in higher education for over a decade. She is passionate about the role of sociology in informing ethical, inclusive, and transformative professional practice. In addition to teaching across diverse subjects including gender, ethics, and social theory, she has also supported research capacity-building through supervision, academic support programs, and curriculum development. Her current research interests include restorative pedagogies, the ethics of care, and culturally responsive evidence translation, and she remains committed to exploring how social research can influence systems change and reflective practice in policy, health, and education.