Symposium Speakers

• Bruce M. Alberts Ph.D.
• J. Michael Bishop, M.D.
• Haile T. Debas, M.D.
• Richard G.A. Feachem, D.Sc. (Med), Ph.D., CBE
• Julio Frenk, M.D., Ph.D.
• Pascoal Manuel Mocumbi, M.D.

Bruce M. Alberts, Ph.D.
President, National Academy of Sciences; Professor, Biochemistry and Biophysics, UCSF

President of the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., Dr. Alberts has spent his career making significant contributions to the field of life sciences. A respected biochemist, he is one of the original authors of The Molecular Biology of the Cell, considered the leading textbook of its kind. Dr. Alberts has long been committed to improving science education, dedicating much of his time to educational projects such as City Science, a program seeking to improve science teaching in San Francisco elementary schools. Dr. Alberts graduated from Harvard College with a degree in biochemical sciences and earned a doctorate from Harvard University in 1965. After 10 years on the faculty of Princeton University, he joined UCSF as professor and vice chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, becoming chair in 1985. In 1980, he was awarded an American Cancer Society Lifetime Research Professorship. From 2000 to 2005, Dr. Alberts serves as co-chair of the InterAcademy Council, a new advisory institution in Amsterdam governed by the presidents of 15 science academies from around the world.

J. Michael Bishop, M.D.
Chancellor, University of California, San Francisco

Appointed UCSF Chancellor in 1998, Dr. J. Michael Bishop is a recognized authority on the molecular mechanisms of cancer. Born and raised in rural Pennsylvania, he earned his M.D. degree from Harvard in 1962, joining UCSF as assistant professor of microbiology and immunology in 1968. He shared numerous awards with his colleague Harold Varmus, including the 1982 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, the 1984 Alfred P. Sloan Jr. Prize, the 1984 Gairdner Foundation International Award, and the 1989 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; has served as scientific advisor to a number of national and international organizations; and is a past president of the American Society for Cell Biology. The Arthur and Toni Rembe Rock Distinguished Professor and University Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Bishop continues to teach medical students and supervise a research team. He is the author of a memoir, How to Win the Nobel Prize: An Unexpected Life in Science, and has authored or coauthored three other books and nearly 400 scientific papers, publications, and reviews.

Haile T. Debas, M.D.
Executive Director, UCSF Global Health Sciences; Maurice Galante Distinguished Professor of Surgery; Dean (Medicine), Vice Chancellor (Medical Affairs), and Chancellor Emeritus, UCSF

Dean (Medicine), Vice Chancellor (Medical Affairs) and Chancellor Emeritus at UCSF, Dr. Haile T. Debas, Maurice Galante Distinguished Professor of Surgery, is now Executive Director of UCSF Global Health Sciences. A native of Eritrea, he received his M.D. from McGill University and completed his surgical training at the University of British Columbia. Prior to becoming dean he served as chair of surgery at UCSF for six years. Under Dr. Debas's stewardship, the UCSF School of Medicine became a national model for medical education, an achievement for which he was recognized with the 2004 Abraham Flexner Award of the AAMC. Dr. Debas also spearheaded the formation of several interdepartmental and interdisciplinary centers of excellence and was instrumental in developing UCSF's new campus at Mission Bay. He has held leadership positions with numerous membership organizations and professional associations. One of the few surgeons to be elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, he is also a member of the Institute of Medicine. He currently serves on the United Nations Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa and on the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy of the National Academy of Sciences.

Richard G.A. Feachem, D.Sc. (Med), Ph.D., CBE
Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; Professor, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, UCSF; Founding Director, Institute for Global Health, UCSF

Founding director of the UCSF Institute for Global Health and the first Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, Dr. Feachem has worked in international health for 30 years, and has published extensively on public health and health policy. At the World Bank he served as director of Health, Nutrition, and Population. He was dean of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Dr. Feachem holds a Doctor of Science degree in Medicine and a Ph.D. in Environmental Health. He is an honorary fellow of the faculty of Public Health Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians. A British national, Dr. Feachem was awarded by Queen Elizabeth II a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to international health. In 2002 he was elected to the membership of the U.S. Institute of Medicine.

Julio Frenk, M.D., Ph.D.
Minister of Health, Mexico

Appointed Secretary of Health for Mexico in 2000, Dr. Frenk's research has focused on health systems, including studies on medical manpower and the relationship between globalization and health. A member of the National Academy of Medicine of Mexico and the U.S. Institute of Medicine, he chaired a joint committee of both institutions to analyze the health implications of the North American Free Trade Agreement. In both his executive functions and his research projects, the main thrust of his work has been improving health policy. Dr. Frenk received his M.D. degree from National University of Mexico and a Ph.D. in Medical Care Organization and Sociology from the University of Michigan. Dr. Frenk has served as Executive Director in charge of Evidence and Information for Policy at the World Health Organization, founding Director General of the National Institute of Public Health of Mexico, and founding Director of the Center for Public Health Research. He was awarded the position of National Researcher (Mexico) and is the author of numerous books and articles, including two best-selling novels for youngsters that engagingly explain anatomical functions. 

Pascoal Manuel Mocumbi, M.D.
High Representative, European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership; immediate past Prime Minister, Mozambique

Recently appointed High Representative to the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), Dr. Pascoal Mocumbi was Prime Minister of the Republic of Mozambique from 1994 to 2004. Prior to that, he headed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health. He received his medical degree from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and has practiced medicine with a specialty in gynecology in hospitals throughout Mozambique. He was an active member of the World Health Organization's Task Force on Health and Development from 1989-1998. Since 1995, Dr. Mocumbi has also served on the board of the International Women's Health Coalition. Dr. Mocumbi is committed to the importance of public health as an essential arm of sustainable development. As a founding member of the Medical Association of Mozambique, the Public Health Association of Mozambique, and Mozambique's Association of Defense of the Family, he has been a leader in the transformation of the country's public healthcare system. In addition, he currently chairs the country's National AIDS Council.