Michael is Director of the Ethox Centre and Professor of Bioethics in the Nuffield Department of Population Health at the University of Oxford. He is principal investigator of the Wellcome Discovery Research Platform for Transformative Inclusivity in Ethics and Humanities Research (ANTITHESES). He leads the Ethics, Humanities, and Social Science Research Theme of the Pandemic Sciences Institute.

Michael’s research focuses on ethical problems arising in global health research, policy, and practice. He has a particular interest in infectious disease ethics and in the ethical aspects of pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. During the COVID-19 pandemic he was a participant in the UK government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) and a member of the WHO’s Expert Group on ethics and governance of infectious disease outbreaks and other emergencies.

In 2012, together with partners in Kenya, Malawi, Malaysia, South Africa, Thailand and Vietnam he established the Global Health Bioethics Network. And, in 2020, with colleagues at the Berman Institute, he established the Oxford-Johns Hopkins Global Infectious Disease Ethics Research Collaboratory (GLIDE).