Erin Howe is a program officer for the Public Health Watch initiative of the Open Society Public Health Program. In that role, Howe works to strengthen meaningful and sustained engagement by affected communities in the development and implementation of health policies, particularly on issues that impact marginalized groups (such as Roma, people living with HIV or TB, and people who use drugs).
Prior to joining the Open Society Foundations, Howe coordinated tuberculosis training and medical consultation efforts in six states through the Center for Disease Control's Regional Training and Medical Consultation Center based at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She has also worked for the Epidemiology Department at the Harvard School of Public Health. Howe holds bachelor degrees in chemistry and women's studies from Smith College and earned a Masters in Public Health from Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, where she worked on a community-based research project with the Thai AIDS Treatment Action Group on barriers to TB and TB/HIV diagnosis and treatment for current or former drug users in Thailand.