A dialogue to understand the role of science and scientists towards peace and resolution of conflicts
November 10th is the birthday of Elisa L. Zamfirescu, the woman who inspires the name of our EELISA Alliance. She was the first female engineer in Europe and, after a successful career as leader of several geology laboratories, she became an activist for disarmament and against nuclear threats during the Cold War times. In addition, World Science Day for Peace and Development is celebrated on this same day. This is the remarkable context of the “EELISA Days” (10-17 November 2022).
With the aim to launch such an important week in the life of our Alliance, and to offer a space of reflection on the role of science, and scientists, in times of crisis and conflict resolution, EELISA has organized the Opening Conference “Science for Peace, past and present”.
Conceived as a dialogue between two experts, this hybrid event will offer the possibility to dive into the topic from two different perspectives:
o A historical approach that draws the role of science and scientists towards peace and resolution of crises and conflicts in the past.
o An insight into the role of science and scientists linked to current events (geopolitical conflicts, environmental crisis, pandemic, etc), departing from a case study.
MEET THE SPEAKERS
Casimiro Vizzini
Medical Doctor in international relations. Dr. Vizzini obtained his medical degree at the University of Palermo. After graduating as a specialist in Urology at the University of Messina, he completed a Master’s degree in International Cooperation at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS) in Paris. He started working for UNESCO in April 2007 in the Science Policy and Capacity Building Division. In addition, Dr. Vizzini collaborated with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in the field of science diplomacy. From 2020 to 2022, he was Secretary General of the European University Alliance for Global Health (EUGLOH).
Maria Jesús Santesmases
Research Profesor in the Institute of Philosophy at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) in Madrid. She is a historian of biology and has published on the twentieth-century history of molecular biology and biochemistry, genetics, antibiotics, and women scientists. She is co-editor with Teresa Ortiz-Gómez of Gendered Drugs and Medicine (2014), and with Edna Suárez of A Cell-Based Epistemology: New Historical Approaches to Human Genetics, a special issue of the journal Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences (2015), and The Circulation of Penicillin in Spain: Health, Wealth and Authority (2018).
When
November 10, 2022 – from 10 AM to 11:30 AM ( CET, GMT+2)
Format
Hybrid
Where
UPM Campus (location TBD)
Online via EELISA youtube channel