Associate Professor Glenn Pearson is the Director First Nations Strategy and Leadership at the Telethon Kids Institute. A member of the Executive Team his position leads the implementation of the Institute’s Commitment to Aboriginal Children and Families (2020-2023) Statement which drives the integration of Indigenous health across the Institute research program. He brings to this role 15 years of experience in senior positions within the Australian and State Governments in a range of areas including health, education, and child protection. Over his 21 years at the Kids Research Institute Australia, he has established a national profile for his research that includes as a Chief Investigator and member of the Australian Alliance for Indigenous Genomics (ALIGN) Indigenous Genomics Council. ALIGN is a national consortium, led by the National Indigenous Governance Council at The Kids Research Institute Australia and the Australian National University (ANU), in partnership with a national network of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stakeholders, peak bodies and communities, as well as research, clinical, industry and institutional partners from across Australia. His primary area of research is in Strep A/Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) and his research program includes the Indigenous Lead in the Australian Strep A Vaccine Alliance (ASAVI). The Australian Strep A Vaccine Initiative (ASAVI) is an Australian-led global initiative with the goal of reducing the disease burden caused by Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) infection through the development of an effective vaccination program.