Professor Pascal Michon (PhD) is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the National University of Vanuatu and the WTO Chairholder for Vanuatu under the World Trade Organization Chairs Programme. A French national, Professor Michon brings over three decades of academic, research, and administrative experience across the Pacific region, particularly in Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu.
He holds a PhD in Molecular Parasitology from the University of Notre Dame (USA), an MSc in Parasitology from the University of Montpellier (France), and a BSc in Organismal Biology from the University of Poitiers. His academic journey has included senior teaching roles in chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology, as well as leadership positions such as Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at Divine Word University (DWU) in Papua New Guinea.
Professor Michon has played a pivotal role in academic governance, serving as Chair of multiple committees including Research, Curriculum & Assessment, and currently the Academic and Assessment Board at the National University of Vanuatu. He is also a member of the university’s Senate and sits on the board of the Vanuatu Institute of Public Administration and Management.
His research spans a wide array of fields including environmental health, climate change, molecular epidemiology of infectious diseases, and non-communicable diseases. He has led and contributed to numerous international research projects funded by organizations such as the European Union, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Fonds Pacifique, and the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. Notable projects include CHANCES-Pacific, SMART Subsea Cables, FALAH, and studies on traditional childhood medicine and AI-driven health monitoring in the Pacific.
Professor Michon is a trained expert in next-generation sequencing technologies and has held research fellowships at the University of Oxford and the PNG Institute of Medical Research. He is actively involved in regional research networks, including the Pacific Islands Universities Research Network (PIURN), and serves on the Vanuatu National Health Research Ethics Committee.
Fluent in French, English, Spanish, Tok Pisin, and Bislama, Professor Michon is deeply committed to advancing science education and public health in the Pacific through interdisciplinary research and institutional capacity-building.