Jessica Young 

Dr Jessica Young is a Senior Research Fellow at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington and Waipapa Taumata Rau—University of Auckland, and an Adjunct Senior Lecturer at the Australian Centre for Health Law Research, Queensland University of Technology. She is a sociologist specialising in death, dying, and assisted dying. Dr Young completed her PhD in 2020 at the University of Otago and was awarded a prestigious postdoctoral fellowship from the Cancer Society of New Zealand. Since the introduction of the End of Life Choice Bill in New Zealand, Dr Young has developed a comprehensive research programme exploring multiple facets of assisted dying. She leads and contributes to several projects, including the Health Research Council-funded study Exploring the Early Experiences of the Assisted Dying Service in Aotearoa. To date, she has secured over $3 million in competitive funding. Dr Young is the founder and co-chair of New Zealand’s Assisted Dying Research Network and was appointed by the Director-General of Health to the Support and Consultation for End of Life in NZ (SCENZ) Group from 2021 to 2023. Her research has directly influenced national policy, with 13 of her team’s recommendations adopted in the Ministry of Health’s 2024 End of Life Choice Act Review. She has published over 40 peer-reviewed articles, six editorials, and three book chapters. Passionate about improving end-of-life experiences for patients, whānau/families, and health practitioners, Dr Young is committed to ethical, inclusive, and culturally responsive research. She actively engages with media and community organisations, and seeks to involve tangata whenua (indigenous people), stakeholders, and diverse communities in her research.