SELECTED TALKS, INTERVIEWS, AND COMMENTARY


Below are some examples of my public speaking engagements, podcast interviews, and public-facing commentary. These materials reflect my work translating reproductive health evidence for diverse audiences - from clinical providers to policymakers to the public. As a 2023 John Maddox Prize recipient, much of my recent commentary addresses research integrity challenges in sexual and reproductive health. (Peer-reviewed publications are covered on this page, and print media citations are covered on this page.) I welcome invitations to speak at conferences, meetings, universities, and elsewhere, and to provide expert commentary for journalists.
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SELECTED WRITTEN COMMENTARY
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Fertility Tracking Must Be Grounded in Evidence and Reproductive Justice, Health Affairs Forefront, January 2026

• Examines how fertility tracking technologies are being politicized and why they must be grounded in evidence and integrated within a reproductive justice framework.

 
SLAPP'ed: Standing Up for Scientific Integrity, Inquisitive Magazine (Heterodox Academy), June 2025

• A first-person account of facing a frivolous (and ultimately unsuccessful) $1 million lawsuit for challenging misleading research on fertility tracking devices.

 
An Expert's Look at Fertility Awareness Methods, Elemental (Medium), November 2019

• Breaking down the evidence on fertility awareness-based methods for pregnancy prevention.

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SELECTED TALKS & PRESENTATIONS
 
Flawed Science, Misleading Claims: Lessons from the Daysy Fertility Tracker Case, Webinar on “Science integrity in SRHR: Navigating Truth in a Changing World", WHO/IBP Network, April 2025

• As part of a WHO-led, multi-speaker panel on misinformation in SRHR research, I examined how the Daysy case exposed critical gaps in scientific publishing, regulatory oversight, and legal protections for research integrity.

 
2023 Maddox Prize acceptance speech excerpt, Sense about Science and Nature, October 2023

• In my Maddox Prize acceptance speech, I shared how being sued for defending evidence-based public health exposed vulnerabilities in systems meant to protect scientific integrity and the scientists working to uphold it.

 
Controversies, Caveats, and Conundrums in Contraceptive Effectiveness, Contraceptive Technology Conference, Atlanta, GA, September 2023

• At the Contraceptive Technology Conference, I examined methodological challenges in calculating and communicating contraceptive effectiveness, addressed controversies around misleading claims, and emphasized the importance of patient-centered counseling.

 
Contraceptive-Induced Menstrual Changes: A discussion for beginning with the end in mind series, CTI Exchange, May 2021

• As part of a CTI Exchange panel on contraceptive product development, I discussed my research on how users experience contraceptive-induced menstrual bleeding changes (CIMBCs) and explored how this evidence can guide more acceptable contraceptive product development.

 
Contraceptive Options are Critical for Women with HIV, Population Reference Bureau, March 2018

• In this Population Reference Bureau video, I explained why contraceptive choice is critical for women affected by HIV, discussing drug interactions, potential HIV acquisition risks, and the promise of multipurpose prevention technologies that could offer simultaneous protection.

 
Hormonal contraceptive methods & HIV acquisition in women: updated systematic review of epidemiological evidence. AVAC and ICW East Africa, September 2016

• In this AVAC webinar, I presented findings from an updated systematic review on hormonal contraception and HIV acquisition, discussing evidence across different contraceptive methods (and with particular focus on DMPA), and explored implications for individual women and policymakers in varying epidemiological contexts.

 
Scientific Literacy: an introduction, The Well, February 2016

• In this presentation for fertility awareness educators, I explained the scientific process, peer review, and evidence hierarchies, then addressed common misunderstandings—from anecdotes versus data to cherry-picking evidence—to support evidence-based practice.

 
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SELECTED PODCASTS, INTERVIEW, & VIDEO MEDIA APPEARANCES

Dr. Chelsea Polis: Women's Reproductive Health on the Move, Critically Speaking podcast with Therese Markow, April 2026

• In this Critically Speaking podcast, we discussed the evolution of reproductive rights in the United States, how FABMs work and what the evidence shows about their effectiveness, the need for stronger FemTech regulation, and more.
  

Fertility Tracking Must be Grounded in Evidence and Reproductive Justice, rePROs Fight Back podcast with Jennie Wetter, March 2026

• In this rePROs Fight Back interview, we discussed what fertility awareness-based methods (FABMs) are, how they have been politicized by the MAHA movement, and why these methods should be centered within a reproductive justice framework.

Fertility Awareness-Based Pregnancy Prevention - Pro or Con? With Drs. Chelsea Polis and Rebecca Simmons, FMUS Podcast with Francoise Girard, December 2025

• ​In this FMUS podcast interview, I discussed the evidence on fertility awareness-based methods for pregnancy prevention, how the SRH field's historical dismissal created space for conservative weaponization, and argued that FABMs should be integrated within a reproductive justice framework.

 
Trump Admin to burn, not deliver, $9.7M worth of contraception, CNN International, Kristie Lu Stout, July 2025

• In this CNN International interview, I discussed the Trump administration's pending decision to incinerate $9.7 million worth of taxpayer-funded contraceptives rather than to distribute them, explaining how this would impact over 1.5 million women and couples and have devastating impact on global reproductive health.

What male birth control means for women's health (with Drs. Regine Sitruk-Ware and Chelsea Polis), MedCity FemFwd, February 2024

• In this podcast, along with Dr. Regine Sitruk-Ware, I discussed how expanding contraceptive options to include male methods could meaningfully reduce unintended pregnancies globally - particularly in settings with low current contraceptive use - while enabling more equitable sharing of reproductive responsibility between partners.

 
Row over British Journal of Psychiatry abortion paper saw panel quit, BBC News, Kate Lamble and Hannah Barnes, July 2023

• In this BBC Newsnight investigation, I was interviewed as a scientist who raised concerns about a methodologically flawed paper linking abortion to mental health problems - research still being cited in US court cases - and discussed how the journal's failure to retract it (despite an independent panel's recommendation) undermines scientific integrity.

 
The Contraceptive Headache (also available on Spotify), Visible Women with Caroline Criado Perez, October 2022

• In this Visible Women podcast with Caroline Criado Perez, I discussed the contraceptive innovation gap, lack of scientific scrutiny among some tech companies, how misinformation threatens reproductive autonomy, and my commitment to providing accurate reproductive health information.

   
#FPVoices interview with Anne Ballard Sara for the FPVoices project by K4Health and FP2020. International Conference on Family Planning, Rwanda, November 2018

• In this FPVoices interview at ICFP Rwanda, I reflected on my career in reproductive health research, discussed how the hormonal contraception and HIV controversy shaped my approach to evidence-based policy, and emphasized the importance of researchers speaking out against scientific misinformation - while amplifying voices of those willing to speak candidly about their reproductive experiences.

"Amazing Alumni" talk, Department of Population, Family, and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, April 2016.

• In my talk for the Johns Hopkins "Amazing Alumni" award, I reflected on my career trajectory and shared lessons from navigating controversial reproductive health research topics (from emergency contraception, to abortion and mental health, to hormonal contraception and HIV), highlighting the importance of scientific integrity, letting data guide policy, communicating beyond academia, and building resilience through mentorship.