Two leading scientists join Wellcome's board
We’ve made two new appointments to Wellcome's Board of Governors, the external experts who oversee all our work and provide support and challenge to our executive team.
Wellcome's new governors: (left to right) Gabriel Leung and Arup K. Chakraborty.
Gabriel Leung is Dean of Medicine and Helen and Francis Zimmern Professor in Population Health at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). He is one of Asia’s leading epidemiologists, with extensive experience in viral epidemics. Gabriel served as Hong Kong's first Under Secretary for Food and Health from 2008 to 11, and then as Director of the Hong Kong Chief Executive's Office from 2011 to 2012. He returned to HKU, where he had previously completed his doctorate, as Head of Community Medicine in 2012, before being appointed Dean in 2013.
Arup K. Chakraborty is the Robert T. Haslam Professor of Chemical Engineering, Physics, and Chemistry at Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT). He was the founding director of MIT's Institute for Medical Engineering and Science. With a background in chemical engineering, his focus is on the intersection between immunology, physics and engineering, aiming to help develop better vaccines and therapies by examining the mechanisms underlying how the immune system responds to pathogens such as HIV or influenza.
Our governors bring expertise from a range of backgrounds and are ultimately accountable for all of Wellcome's work. These roles were openly advertised and members of the current board, along with incoming chair Julia Gillard, made the appointments. Arup and Gabriel will take up their roles in May 2021.
I'm delighted that Gabriel and Arup are joining Wellcome's board. They are not only world-class scientists, but just as importantly, they are both highly committed to making sure the benefits of scientific discovery reach those who need them.