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'I am going to the sea to fetch a new baby, but the journey is long and dangerous, and I may not return' (unknown). Half a million women die during or shortly after childbirth every year. The vast majority of these deaths occur in the developing world and most are preventable. The UN Millenium Development Goals include a goal to reduce maternal mortality by three-quarters by 2015. But how? Dr. Anne Wallis is an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Iowa, College of Public Health. Her research focuses on global and rural maternal health outcomes. Dr. Wallis trained in maternal and child health epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. She teaches courses in epidemiologic field methods, theory, and social epidemiology. Her major interest areas include: (1) pregnancy outcomes, including hypertension in pregnancy and preterm delivery, (2) intimate partner violence (particularly among pregnant and parenting women), (3) maternal and child health in developing countries, and (4) social and geographic risk factors for maternal mortality and morbidities. More information on the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council can be found here.