Jane Bertrand Honored as 2026 IUSSP Laureate at the Annual Meeting of the PAA
IUSSP's 2026 Laureate, Jane Bertrand, was honored during a special side meeting held at the Population Association of America's (PAA) Annual Meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, on 7 May 2026. The gathering brought together IUSSP members, colleagues, former students, friends, and family members to celebrate Jane's distinguished career and her selection as the 36th IUSSP Laureate.
The event provided an opportunity to recognize Jane's achievements in the company of those who have worked with, learned from, and been inspired by her over the course of her career. On behalf of the IUSSP, Mary Ellen Zuppan and Ann Moore presented Jane with her Laureate Award before an audience that spanned multiple generations of population scientists.
Jane Bertrand was nominated by her colleagues and selected by the IUSSP Council in recognition of her "rigorous commitment to the application of scientific research on family planning and reproductive health to policies and programs serving vulnerable populations in some of the world's poorest countries." In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, her research has generated evidence that informed Ministry of Health policies and contributed to reducing inequalities in access to family planning services. She is also a gifted mentor training hundreds of researchers and junior faculty.
A particularly meaningful aspect of the celebration was the presence of several of Jane's fellow graduate students from the University of Chicago, where they studied under Donald J. Bogue, the 2011 IUSSP Laureate. Amy Tsui, a friend and colleague since graduate school, reflected on Jane's remarkable career and personal journey, tracing her contributions from pioneering work on the evaluation of family planning programs to her passion for "highpointing"—climbing the highest peak in each of the 50 U.S. states.
Additional tributes were offered by fellow graduate school colleagues Stan Becker and Michael White. Ilene Speizer spoke warmly about Jane's influence as her first employer and mentor, reflecting on the guidance and opportunities she provided early in her career.
In her remarks, Jane reflected on her decades of work in family planning and reproductive health, with particular attention to her experiences in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She also discussed her latest project, documenting the experiences of over 80 family planning and reproductive health workers in the wake of major reductions in U.S. foreign assistance. She plans to publish the work in a forthcoming book titled When the Sky Falls: The Story of International Family Planning.
The gathering was an opportunity for participants to reconnect, share memories, and celebrate Jane's many contributions to population research, public health, and international development.
The official IUSSP Laureate Ceremony will take place virtually on 28 September 2026, when colleagues involved in Jane's nomination, members of the IUSSP Council, and IUSSP President Laura Wong will formally recognize her career and achievements before the wider international population community.
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