Publications

I'm an excellent writer and communicator for public and technical audiences.

My work has been cited by professionals & researchers in organizations like the United Nations, the IAPAC-Lancet HIV Commission, The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, and more. I've presented at conferences for sociology, demography, and public health as well as delivered public talks.

Featured first-author publications

(Book chapter) Viswasam N, Comins C, Rao A, Lyons CE, Rivera J, Baral SB (2021).
The Epidemiology of HIV among Sex Workers around the World: Implications for Research, Programs, and Policy. In: Sex work, health and human rights: Global inequities, challenges and opportunities for action. Springer, 2021. p15-39.

(Peer-reviewed Article - View Summary) Viswasam N, Schwartz S, Baral S (2020).
Characterizing the role of intersecting stigmas and sustained inequities in driving HIV syndemics across low-to-middle income settings. Current Opinion in HIV and AIDS. 2020 Jul 1; 15(4):243-9.

(Peer-reviewed Article) Viswasam N, Lyons CE, MacAllister J, Millett G, Sherwood J, Rao A, Baral SD, Global.HIV Research Group (2020). The uptake of population size estimation studies for key populations in guiding HIV responses on the African continent. Plos one. 2020 Feb 26;15(2):e0228634.

(Preprint - View my award-winning poster on this work) Viswasam N, Obiegbu S, Kimani-Murage E, Leonard K, Madhavan S (2024 preprint). Staying fed: Kin networks and food security in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya. Working Papers Series, Association of Population Centers Arxiv.

Featured co-authored publications

(Book chapter) Schwartz S, Viswasam N, Abdalla P (2021). Integrated interventions to address sex workers’ needs and realities: Academic and Community Insights in Incorporating Structural, Behavioral, and Biomedical Approaches. In: Sex work, health and human rights: Global inequities, challenges and opportunities for action. Springer, 2021:231-53.

(Technical Report) Rao, Amrita, Viswasam, Nikita, and Baral, Stefan. 2020.
"Strengthening capacity for assessment of HIV-related data needs among key populations to inform evidence-based responses." Project SOAR Final Report. Washington, DC: Population Council.

(Peer-reviewed Article) Stoebenau, K., Viswasam, N., Sidze, E. M., & Madhavan, S. (2025). Integrating the In‐Laws: Class and Kin Support Within Marriage in Urban Kenya. Journal of Marriage and Family.

(Peer-reviewed Article) Schwartz, S. R., Rao, A., Rucinski, K. B., Lyons, C., Viswasam, N., Comins, C. A., ... & Baral, S. (2019). HIV-related implementation research for key populations: designing for individuals, evaluating across populations, and integrating context. JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 82, S206-S216.

Presentations & Talks

04/2025 | Oral presentation: “The influence of anti-immigration policy climates on Asian American social service engagement: Findings from the Current Population Survey, 1990 – 2020”. Population Association of America Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, Presenter

08/2024 | Presentation: “Who can become Asian American? Race, labor and class in immigration policy.” American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Presenter

08/2024 | Presentation: “Does marriage marry kin networks? A qualitative analysis of low- and high income couples in Kenya.” American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Montreal,

Quebec, Canada, Presenter

02/2024 | Virtual public talk: “When Immigration became illegal: race, labor, and Asian America,” Prince George County Library System, Maryland, USA, Presenter

04/2024 | Poster presentation: “Does kin support protect against food insecurity? New findings from

Nairobi, Kenya.” Population Association of America Annual Meeting, Columbus, Ohio. PAA Poster Award, “Children, Intergenerational Relationships, and Gender and Sexuality” session

06/2019 | Poster presentation: “Implementation of a pilot peer mentorship program for female sex worker mothers in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.” South Africa AIDS Conference, Durban, South Africa

11/2015 | Invited Lecture : “PEPFAR and the State of NGO HIV/AIDS Programs in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.” ANTH 2339, Trinity University Department of Sociology and Anthropology, San Antonio, TX