Dr. Ma. Esmeralda Silva is an Associate Professor. She took her undergraduate studies in Development Communication majoring in Educational Communication. She has since then earned two masters degrees. She finished her Masters in Public Affairs majoring in Strategic Planning and Policy Studies from the University of the Philippines in Los Banos. She subsequently completed her MS in Public Policy and Management specializing in Policy Analysis in J. Heinz School of Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. In 2014, Dr. Silva received her doctorate degree Public Health from the College of Public Health Sciences of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Her main research interest lies in obesogenic (obesity-promoting) environments, particularly in developing or low-income countries. Her dissertation study focused on determining the relationship between the local food environment on dietary outcomes of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus patients enrolled in the Cardiovascular Program of Davao City. However, she has diverse research experience in different aspects of health service delivery. During her time at Carnegie Mellon University, she worked as a Research Assistant in the university’s Center for Economic Development where she was the lead researcher for the Baseline Study on Senior Centers for the Allegheny Agency for Aging that determine the utilization patterns of the county’s senior centers among the elderly population. Since joining UP Manila, she has been involved in researches on the demand for health human resources, maternal and child health and universal health care. Her current researches include the assessment of the Primary Health Care in the Philippines and the Economic Valuation study of climate change adaptation and health.

Prior to leaving for Pittsburgh, she was an adjunct professor in the School for Business and Governance at the Ateneo de Davao University. Upon joining UP Manila, she has served as a lecturer in the health policy-related courses of the College of Public Health. She is also one of the resource persons in the various health policy short courses offered by the Department of Health Policy and Administration. Dr. Silva is also part of the academic team actively engaged in the Health Leadership and Governance Program (HLGP) of the Department of Health, in partnership with Zuellig Family Foundation. The academic team from the College is tasked to train, guide and coach municipal mayors, municipal health officers and DOH regional officers on health leadership and governance.