Zoe Jordan

Professor Zoe Jordan is the Executive Director of JBI and has held numerous leadership positions over the past 20 years’ working to promote and support evidence-based healthcare globally. Professor Jordan is interested in the relationship between communication theory, engagement, and translation science, particularly in an increasingly global context.  She is also interested in international, cross-cultural collaboration, including but not limited to discursive competence, cultural brokering, and relational empathy.

Professor Jordan has a keen interest in research and synthesis prioritisation and the role of global collaborative evidence networks in addressing global health issues. She is particularly interested in understanding how evidence syntheses efforts related to global frameworks such as the United National Sustainable Development Goals can be more efficiently and effectively addressed in more cohesive, coordinated and collaborative ways to generate meaningful impact across the evidence ecosystem. She has been involved in the Global Evidence Commission Response Working Group (Australia) to better understand the national evidence architecture and is currently co-leading the global Evidence Synthesis Infrastructure Collaborative planning process, supported by the Wellcome Trust, to develop a roadmap to deliver a more equitable, collaborative and co-ordinated approach to the delivery of trustworthy evidence.

Stakeholder engagement in evidence synthesis is critical to the success of synthesis programs and as such Professor Jordan leads a JBI working group aimed at developing guidance for those undertaking synthesis projects. Related to this work program of work, she is also a member of the SPOR Evidence Alliance International Advisory Committee (Canada) and works closely with the Multi-Stakeholder Engagement Consortia (MuSE) and Cochrane Co-Production Methodology Group.

As a systematic review methodologist Professor Jordan believes in the importance of having an inclusive approach to what constitutes evidence to guide policy and practice. She has been a member of the JBI Textual Evidence Synthesis Methodology Group for many years and is a strong advocate for the utilisation of opinion, narrative, and text where appropriate. She is also a member of the Evidence Synthesis Taxonomy Initiative Advisory Group (ESTI) which seeks to improve the quality and science of evidence synthesis of medical research through the development of an evidence synthesis taxonomy.

Professor Jordan believes in a holistic approach to evidence-based healthcare and was a key driver in the redevelopment of the JBI Model of Evidence Based Healthcare and the associated EBHC "Flywheel" which seeks to unpack key drivers of momentum in evidence-based healthcare. This work spans evidence generation, synthesis, transfer, and implementation. Professor Jordan is a member of the Health Translation SA Implementation Science Network Executive and in this capacity hopes to influence state-wide initiatives that showcase the exceptional knowledge and expertise across the state in this field.

In addition to her academic interests, Professor Jordan was the recipient of the South Australian Telstra Businesswomen’s Award for Public Sector and Academia in 2019. This award recognises women who transform the status quo and dedicate themselves to making an impact in their field and acknowledged the significant impact Professor Jordan has made in the field of knowledge translation and commercialisation globally.