Dr. Jennifer Chan de Avila

Women's health researcher, educator, and doula. Providing menstrual health and menopause literacy, guidance, and support to women and the places they work in.

I hold a PhD in politics focused on gender and intersectionality. I started my career as a journalist before moving into academia, where I spent years researching and teaching on intersectional feminism, body politics, and diversity in organisations.

At 37, I was diagnosed with premature menopause (premature ovarian insufficiency / POI). Unable to find the support I needed, I trained as a menopause doula, traditional womb care practitioner, and Ayurvedic health advisor, and founded La Menodoula.

I am co-author of "Menopause at Work: An Action Framework for Innovative Workplace Health Management" (Transcript Verlag, 2025), was an associate researcher for the MenoSupport Project at HTW Berlin, and served as the expert for Germany in the international group that developed ISO 45010 on menstruation and menopause at work. I am a member of the Deutsche Verband für Wechseljahresberatung.

Through La Menodoula, I am reframing menstrual health and menopause as catalysts for positive personal and organisational transformation.

Featured In

the book

Menopause at Work: An Action Framework for Innovative Workplace Health Management (in German)

Co-authored with Sabine Nitsche. Transcript Verlag, 2025. A research-based guide for organisations building strategies to support women through menopause at work. Available open access.

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Selected Publications

Chan de Avila, Jennifer (2025): Menopausia en el trabajo: cuerpo, política y transformación. Nueva Sociedad, No. 316.

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Chan de Avila, Jennifer; Nitsche, Sabine (2024): Wechseljahre: Ein Problem am Arbeitsplatz? Impu!se für Gesundheitsförderung, No. 123.

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Chan de Avila, Jennifer (2024): Transformation als Chance. Magazin P&G.

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Research & Projects

MenoSupport. Developing innovative workplace health measures for women in menopause. IFAF Berlin, HTW Berlin. 2022–2024

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Wechseljahre am Arbeitsplatz: Zeit für Transformation. Sensitisation project at Freie Universität Berlin. 2025–present.

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EMAS 2023. Conference presentation: "Menopause at work" (abstract in Maturitas). European Menopause and Andropause Society, Florence.

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Shiny Happy Universities? A comparative analysis of diversity politics in international higher education. FU Berlin. 2019–2022. With Gülay Caglar.

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Intersectionality Research Methods. Gender and diversity categories in empirical higher education research. FU Berlin. 2020–2021. With Gülay Caglar.

EQUIP: Equal Opportunities in Higher Education. Partnership for institutional change with University of Cape Coast and Kenyatta University. DAAD DIES Partnership. FU Berlin. 2020–2021. With Gülay Caglar.

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Press & Media

Tages-Anzeiger (Switzerland, November 2024) — Interview: "Wechseljahre werden zum Wirtschaftsfaktor"

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metall / IG Metall (Germany, 3/4 2025) — Interview: "Tabuthema Wechseljahre"

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WILA Arbeitsmarkt (Germany, March 2025) — Feature: "Wechseljahre am Arbeitsplatz"

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BG Prevent (Germany, 2025) — Expert article: "Wechseljahre am Arbeitsplatz: Wie Sie Maßnahmen strukturiert im BGM verankern"

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Claudia Magazine (Brazil, May 2025) — Feature: "Dar à luz a si mesma"

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Wirtschaftspsychologie aktuell (Germany, 2025) — Interview: "Die Wechseljahre können die Wurzel einer tiefen Transformation sein"

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Podcasts, Talks and Appearances

  • 37 Grad / ZDF (Germany, March 2025) — Documentary: "Wechseljahre: heißkalt erwischt"

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  • Meno an Mich (Brigitte, RTL+ Podcast) — Episode: "Frauen mitten im Leben"

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  • COSMO / Estación Sur (WDR, in Spanish) — Podcast: "Hablemos de menopausia"

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  • Stadt Zürich / Bibliotalk (Switzerland, October 2025) — Talk (video): "Menstruelle Gesundheit im Berufsalltag: Die Wechseljahre im Fokus"

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  • Deutsches Hygiene-Museum Dresden (Germany, March 2025) — Talk (video): "Arbeitswelt und Gesellschaft in den Wechseljahren"

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Ready to Work Together?

I help organisations normalise menstrual health and menopause at work, support women through their own experience, and collaborate on research and projects that advance this field. If this resonates, I'd love to hear from you.

FOR WORKPLACES FOR WOMEN
LET'S WORK TOGETHER