Biography of participants
Ronald A. DePinho
Ronald A. DePinho was born in the Bronx, NY in 1955.
He earned a bachelor's degree in biological sciences in 1977 from Fordham University, where he graduated summa cum laude as class salutatorian. He received his medical degree with distinction in microbiology and immunology in 1981 from Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
He was the fourth president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and is internationally recognized for basic and translational research in cancer, aging and age-associated degenerative disorders. He was inducted into the National Academy of Sciences in 2012. He was only the fourth full-time president in the 70-year history of MD Anderson.
He announced his resignation on March 8, 2017, after scrutiny over the administration of the organization had put him in the spotlight, and remained through the end of the 85th Texas Legislative Session.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesusv
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesusv is an Ethiopian politician, academic, and public-health authority who since 2017 has been Director-General of the World Health Organization. He served in the Government of Ethiopia as Minister of Health from 2005 to 2012 and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2016. Born March 3, 1965 in Asmara, Tedros joined the Ministry of Health in 1986, after graduating from the University of Asmara. An internationally recognized malaria researcher, as Minister of Health, Tedros received praise for a number of innovative and system-wide health reforms that substantially improved access to health services and key outcomes.
Pauline Nuggent
Professor Pauline Nugent, Dean of Health Sciences and former Victorian Businesswoman of the Year, is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at Australian Catholic University (ACU).
She holds a Master of Education from Monash University and a Bachelor of Applied Science from Lincoln Institute of Health Sciences.
Her scholarly record includes publications, public lectures and conferences in nursing education, rural health, clinical research and health curriculum development as well as public funding of research development and evaluation projects worth more than $5 million.
Giuseppe Versaldi
Giuseppe Versaldi is the Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, since his appointment, by Pope Francis on 31 March 2015.
Previously, Cardinal Versaldi had served as Cardinal President of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See since 21 September 2011.
Cardinal Versaldi had served before that as Bishop of Alessandria. Pope Benedict XVI elevated him to the rank of cardinal on 18 February 2012.
M. Vincenzo Paglia
M. Vincenzo Paglia is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church.
He is President of the Pontifical Academy for Life and Grand Chancellor of the St. John Paul II Pontifical Institute for Studies of Marriage and Family.
He was President of the Pontifical Council for the Family from 2012 to 2016 and Bishop of Terni-Narni-Amelia, Italy, from 2000 to 2012. He was a co-founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio in 1968.
Dr. Isabel CAPELOA GIL
IFCU President
Rector the Catholic University of Portugal
Isabel Capeloa Gil is Full Professor of Culture Studies at the School of Human Sciences and Rector of the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP). She studied in Lisbon (U. Lisbon), Munich (Ludwig Maximilian University) and Chicago and holds a PhD in German Studies from UCP. Previously, she was Vice-Rector for Research and Internationalization (2012- 2016) and the Dean of the School of Human Sciences (2005-2012) of the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP). Having grown up in Asia (Macao), Isabel Gil has been especially interested in researching issues of diversity and conflict and has structured her work around the exploration of the disciplinary boundaries between literature, the arts and other disciplines.
She is a passionate advocate of international education and works consistently to develop international research networks, exploring the different ways in which the practice of the arts and humanities is pivotal to advance a more sustainable and intellectually robust global education agenda. Her research is currently published in Portuguese, English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. She is the author of over 140 publications, bridging cultural theory, interarts studies, visual culture, culture and conflict and her work has been published in New German Critique, Dedalus or Colloquia Germanica, amongst many others journals.
She was a founding member and is a senior researcher at the Research Centre for Communication and Culture (CECC), where she coordinated the research group Culture, Art and Citizenship (CULTCIT). Isabel Gil is furthermore Honorary Fellow at the IGRS, School of Advanced Studies, University of London and holds a position as Invited Professor at USJ (Macao). An advocate of strengthening doctoral education, she has been involved with the Council for Doctoral Education at the European University Association.
Professor Frédéric Houssiau
The professor Frédéric Houssiau is born on December 23, 1958 in Brussels.
He graduated as a doctor of medicine in 1983 from the Catholic University of Louvain and opted for a specialization in internal medicine / rheumatology. During and after this training, he obtained several mandates from the National Fund for Scientific Research that allowed him to work as a researcher in the Experimental Medicine Unit of the Institute of Duve, under the direction of Professor Jacques Van Snick.
He obtained the diploma of Agrégé of Higher Education in 1993, defending his thesis entitled "The role of interleukin-6 in T-cell activation". He has been Head of the Rheumatology Department of the Saint-Luc University Clinic since 2004 and has been an Ordinary Professor at the Catholic University of Louvain since 2002.
Rev. Terry KERSCH
St. Joseph's College president
Fr. Terry Kersch, CSB, PhD, has been serving as President of St. Joseph’s College, University of Alberta since July 1, 2011.
Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada he encountered the Congregation of Priests of St. Basil (the Basilian Fathers) while competing his Doctorate in Political Science at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. As a Basilian he has served in Canada, United States of America, Mexico, and Colombia.
While serving as Chaplain at the University of St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto he taught as a sessional instructor in the areas of Catholic Social thought, the Church in Latin America, and Equity and Diversity in Education. He has served on the Collegium of the University of St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto, the Board of Governors of St. Thomas More College at the University of Saskatchewan and Assumption University in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. His current research interests include Modern Hebrew, and the Politics and Society of Israel.
Dr. Herminio DAGOHOY, O.P
Rector, University of Santo Tomas (Manila, Philippines)
IFCU Vice-President
Born in 1965 in Hagonoy, Bulacan in where he spent his childhood, he completed his basic education at Sta. Elena Elementary School and Hagonoy Institute in Bulacan. He studied Accountancy at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in 1985. He professed the evangelical vows in the Order of Preachers in 1988 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1994.
As a Dominican, Fr. Dagohoy obtained the following degrees: BA Philosophy at the Philippine Dominican Center of Institutional Studies in 1990; Bachelor in Sacred Theology at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculty of Sacred Theology in 1993; Master of Arts in Philippine Studies in Philosophy at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, in 2000; Licentiate in Philosophy at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculty of Philosophy in 2011 and Doctorate in Philosophy also at UST in 2012. His areas of specialization include Ancient Philosophy, Theodicy, Social Philosophy, and Hermeneutics.
He previously held posts as Prior/Superior of the Santo Domingo Convent, QC, and Caleruega, Batangas. He was also formerly the Rector of Angelicum College in Quezon City.
Fr. Dagohoy has published articles and book reviews in scholarly journals. He also engaged in significant scientific, ecclesial and cultural activities, and delivered various talks and lectures both in the Philippines and abroad.
Firoz Rasul
Mr Firoz Rasul has served as President of the Aga Khan University since May 1, 2006. Mr Rasul has served as a member of the University of British Columbia's Board of Governors and as a Director on the Board of Science World, British Columbia.
Between 2000 and 2006, he was President of the Aga Khan Council for Canada, where he led the development of several large-scale projects for the Aga Khan Development Network, including The Global Centre of Pluralism in Ottawa and the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto.
As a business leader, Mr Rasul has shared his knowledge and experience as a member of the Board of TELUS Corporation and the Royal Bank Capital Corporation. He was named the 2001 National Transportation Person of the Year by the Government of Canada, and Wilfred Laurier University's School of Business and Economics recognized him with its Outstanding Business Leader award.
Mr Rasul received a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom and an MBA from McGill University in Montreal. Mr Rasul was conferred with the Degree of Doctors of Laws, honoris causa, by Simon Fraser University in 2001 and an honorary Doctorate of Science in 2017 by the University of Alberta.
Sister Ekaete Ekop
Sister Ekaete Ekop is the Assistant Congregational Leader.
Born in Ibadan, Nigeria, Sister Ekaete qualified as a medical doctor before joining MMM. After profession she obtained a certificate in tropical medicine and community health in Liverpool.
Her first assignment was to a new MMM mission in Zaffé village, Glazoué, in the Republic of Benin, where she spent three years working in primary health care. Sister Ekaete then studied for her Fellowship in Obstetrics and Gynaecology from the West African College of Surgeons and National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria, during which time she worked for five years at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital.
She was then assigned to Abakaliki in eastern Nigeria, where she spent eighteen months in the busy maternity section of the hospital there. Sister Ekaete was asked to give up her beloved maternity and gynae work when she was appointed MMM Area Leader for West Africa at the end of 2012.
Dr. Ignacio SÁNCHEZ DIAZ
Dr. Ignacio SÁNCHEZ DIAZ (Santiago de Chile, Chile)
Rector, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
IFCU BOARD MEMBER
Dr. Ignacio Sánchez, President of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC) and tenured professor of the Faculty of Medicine. He married to Dr. Salesa Barja, pediatric nutritionist at UC, with whom he has seven children. He studied at Sagrados Corazones de Alameda School in Santiago, and he is a surgeon and pediatrician who received his training at Universidad Católica. He is also a specialist in respiratory illnesses in children for which he received training at the University of Manitoba in Canada.
He has worked at the Clinical Hospital of the Universidad Católica as Chief of the Pediatric Respiratory Section and Pediatric Services. Since 2004, he has served as Head of the Pediatric Department and Director of the School of Medicine in the School of Medicine. In 2008 he was elected Dean of the School of Medicine.
Dr. Sánchez is part of the editorial committee of several publications and has written more than 200 articles in national and international scientific journals. He is the author of a handbook of pediatrics and of over twenty chapters of texts on pediatrics and respiratory illnesses.
He collaborates as a Board Member of the Cardinal Juan Francisco Fresno Foundation and the Obra Pequeño Cottolengo. He chairs the Board of the San Carlos de Apoquindo UC Clinic and the Board of the Josefina Martínez de Ferrari Foundation.
Dr. Sánchez assumed responsibility of the Rectory of the Universidad Católica for the current 2010 period, succeeding Dr. Pedro Pablo Rosso, who had served as President since March 2000. Dr. Franco ANELLI
Franco Anelli is an Italian academic and rector. He has been a Professor of private law since 1993. In 1991 he won the state exam to become a lawyer, becoming a cassationist in 1998.
He graduated in law at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. After a PhD in commercial law, he became an associate professor of institutions of private law at the Faculty of Economics and Business. He has dealt mainly with the law of obligations and contracts and property rights of the family. He also updates the Torrente-Schlesinger Manual of Private Law published by Giuffrè.
Full Professor of Civil Law at the Piacenza campus of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart up to the academic year 2011/2012, he currently teaches private law institutions at the Milan office, where he holds the office of rector
He also edited the "Private Law Manual" by Andrea Torrente and Piero Schlesinger, published by Giuffrè.
Alberto Ferreira
Prof. Doctor Father Alberto Ferreira was born on September 13, 1970, in Nampula, Mozambique.
He received a degree in Philosophy and another in Spiritual Theology from the Pontifical Urban University (Rome, Italy), the first by the Faculty of Philosophy and the second by the Faculty of Theology, and in 1998 he completed his PhD in Philosophy by the same university.
In 2010 he studied postgraduate studies in Political Science, Governance and International Relations at the Institute of Political Studies of the Portuguese Catholic University.
Chris Van Geet
Chris Van Geet (Christel) is a professor Faculty of Medicine of Leuven, vice rector of the Biomedical Sciences Group and head of the Services of the Vice Rector of Biomedical Sciences
Marlene Barros
Full Professor at the Catholic University of Portugal, she holds a degree in Biology and a PhD in Biochemistry, specializing in Enzymology from the University of Coimbra and in 2007 at the University of Aveiro, the Aggregation Tests in Biology.
In 1982, she started his career at the University of Aveiro, Department of Biology. Coordinated the Master's Degree in Molecular Microbiology at the same University. She taught in the Master's Degree in Animal Experimentation at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra.
In 2001 she joined the Portuguese Catholic University as head of the Basic Sciences of the Dental Medicine course in Viseu. She teaches at the UCP the UC of Cellular Biology, Structural Biochemistry and Immunobiology.
In 2009 she created a degree in Biomedical Sciences, being the coordinator until the present. In 2010 she was Deputy Director of the UCP's Department of Health Sciences. Since 2015 she has been Regional Director of the Institute of Health Sciences in Viseu. She is the Director of the UCP's Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Health (CIIS) since 2015.
Dr. Pierre Vercauteren
IFCU Board Member
Université Catholique de Louvain
Pierre Vercauteren is a political scientist and professor of political science who teaches at UCLouvain FUCaM Mons.
He has a degree in international relations and public administration (UCLouvain, 1984), a degree in European studies (UCLouvain, 1984) and a doctorate in political and social sciences (ULB, 1998).
He is mainly known for his interventions in various Belgian media including RTL-TVI, RTBF, La Libre Belgique, Le Soir, etc. Like other Belgian political scientists, he has been a regular consultant on television programmes since the negotiations for the formation of a Belgian government in 2003, 2007 and 2010, as well as in their various activities.
From 2000 to 2008, he was a guest lecturer at the Free University of Brussels where he taught the « Global Governance » course. He is Secretary General of the international research network REGIMEN (Réseau d’Étude sur la Globalisation et la Gouvernance Internationale et les Mutations de l’Etat et des Nations). He is a member of the LARGOTEC research laboratory at the University of Paris Est.
Dr. Adela Cortina
Adela Cortina is a Spanish philosopher born in Valencia, Spain.
After getting her degree of philosophy and letters in the University of Valencia, she entered the metaphysics department in 1969.
In 1976, she defended her doctorate's thesis, about God in the Kantian transcendental philosophy, and taught for some time in middle-grade institutes.
A research grant allowed her to visit the University of Munich, where she came in contact with critical rationalism, pragmatism, Marxist ethics and more specifically, with the philosophy of Jürgen Habermas and Karl-Otto Apel.
Upon reentering academia in Spain, she oriented her research efforts into ethics. In 1981, she entered the philosophy department of her alma mater, the University of Valencia. She is a frequent contributor to El Pais.
José Manuel Durão Barroso
José Manuel Durão Barroso is a Portuguese politician and economist, current serving as non-executive Chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He previously served as the 11th President of the European Commission and the 115th Prime Minister of Portugal.
Durão Barroso graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon. He subsequently obtained a Diploma in European Studies from the European University Institute, and received a MA degree with honours in both Political Science and Social Sciences from the University of Geneva in Switzerland. His academic career continued as an assistant professor in the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon.
He is a 1998 graduate of the Georgetown Leadership Seminar. Back in Lisbon, Barroso became director of the Department for International Relations at Lusíada University.
Barroso is now a policy fellow at the Liechtenstein Institute on Self- Determination at Princeton University and the Frederick H. Schultz Class of 1951 Visiting Professor of International Economic Policy at Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs Woodrow Wilson School, where he teaches with Wolfgang F. Danspeckgruber on the EU in International Affairs. Barroso also teaches at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and at the University of Geneva. At Católica Global School of Law, he teaches since 2015 the seminar on "The Dynamics of European Union Institutions", for both LL.M. programmes – Law in a European and Global Context and International Business Law
Xiaomei Zhai
Xiaomei Zhai has a Ph.D. of Philosophy of Science/Bioethics (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences CASS, Beijing, China), M.A. of Philosophy (Southeast University, Nanjing, China), Graduated from Changzhi Medical College, Shanxi, China.
She has been IRB fellow at Department of Bioethics, NIH, USA, Visiting Scholar at Center for Clinical Bioethics, Georgetown University, USA, Visiting Scholar at Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands, Leuven University, Belgium, Visiting Scholar at, Johns Hopkins University, USA, Research Fellow at Harvard School of Public Health, USA, Visiting Scholar at Institute of Environment, Philosophy and Public Policy, Lancaster University, U.K, and at Center for Medical Ethics, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany.
Now she is Professor & Supervisor of PhD graduate students at School of the Humanities & Social Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Executive Director at Centre for Bioethics, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College.
Currently she serves as Vice-President & Chief of the Office of National Ethics Committee, National Health Commission (NHC), Member of National Expert Committee on Public Policy, NHC, Chief of the Office for Medical Ethics, Chinese Association of Hospitals, Member of National Expert Committee on Human Organ Donation and Transplantation, Standing Director & Chair of Ethics Working Group for Chinese Association of STD/AIDS, President of Chinese Society for Bioethics, Vice-Chair of ELSI Committee, Chinese Society for Genetics, and Fellow of the Hastings Center. She served as the Member of Ethics Committee, HUGO and Vice President of Asian Bioethics Association, and Temporary Expert for WHO.
She published books, such as the book of Death with Dignity, An Introduction to Bioethics, Medical Ethics and Public Health Ethics, and a large number of articles on bioethics, biotech regulation and health policy.