Cornelia Betsch appointed to the German Ethics Council
Hamburg, 21 October 2024 - Cornelia Betsch, Head of the Health Communication Working Group at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) in Hamburg and Professor of Health Communication and Director of the Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour at the University of Erfurt, has been appointed to the German Ethics Council by Bundestag President Bärbel Bas.
Prof Dr Cornelia Betsch will therefore be a member of the independent Expert Council for the next four years. This council monitors ethical, social, scientific, medical and legal issues as well as the likely consequences for individuals and society that arise in connection with research and developments, particularly in the field of life sciences and their application to humans. The committee has 25 members - scientists from various fields, half of whom are nominated by the Federal Government and half by the Bundestag.
"It is a great honour for me to be part of this committee. I am delighted that the perspective of psychology and the social and behavioural sciences is being strengthened in this way. I am particularly interested in topics in the field of planetary health - how we humans influence the planet and how this affects our health. I am sure that many topics will unfold in this area over the next four years," says Betsch, Head of the RG Health Communication.
Prof Dr Jürgen May, Chairman of the BNITM: "We are delighted that Cornelia Betsch has been appointed as a new member of the German Ethics Council. Her extensive expertise and tireless commitment in the field of planetary health will be a valuable asset for the discussion of solutions to essential issues of our time."
Prof. Dr André Brodocz, Vice President for Research and Career Development at the University of Erfurt, is also delighted: "We congratulate our colleague Cornelia Betsch on this appointment, which is a great social honour for her academic work. We are also proud of this as a university. It also encourages us not only to conduct research with renowned academics on socially relevant issues, but also to contribute these findings to public debates and thus make an important contribution to the challenges of our time."
Background
The German Ethics Council deals with the big questions of life. With its opinions and recommendations, it provides guidance for society and politics. The members are appointed by the President of the German Bundestag. The German Ethics Council was constituted on 11 April 2008 on the basis of the Ethics Council Act and succeeded the National Ethics Council established by the Federal Government in 2001. To date, the German Ethics Council has drawn up 23 comprehensive opinions, including on the topics of anonymous child abortion, intersexuality, pre-implantation diagnostics, genetic diagnostics, patient welfare and big data. Current topics include artificial intelligence and climate ethics. Cornelia Betsch had already contributed to the most recently published statement on climate justice. The Ethics Council has thus established itself as a source of inspiration for advising politicians as well as the general public.
About the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM)
The Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) is Germany's largest institution for research, care and teaching in the field of tropical diseases and emerging infectious diseases. Current thematic focuses are malaria, haemorrhagic fever viruses, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), immunology, epidemiology and the clinic for tropical diseases as well as the mechanisms of virus transmission by mosquitoes. The institute has laboratories of the highest biological safety level (BSL4) and an insectarium of biological safety level 3 (BSL3) for handling highly pathogenic viruses and infected insects. The BNITM supports the establishment of (mobile) laboratory capacities in numerous countries of the so-called Global South.
Contact person
Prof. Dr Cornelia Betsch
Research Group Leader
Email : cornelia.betsch@bnitm.de
Dr Anna Hein
Public Relations
Phone : +49 40 285380-269
Email : presse@bnitm.de
