The R. Geigy Foundation Board elected Jürg Utzinger, Director of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), as the new President of the R. Geigy Foundation as of 1 January 2023, succeeding Marcel Tanner, who chaired the Foundation for 25 years.
A strategically important vessel for Swiss TPH
"I am delighted to be leading the R. Geigy Foundation as President from January 2023," said Utzinger. "Over the past decades, the R. Geigy Foundation has developed into a strategically important vessel for Swiss TPH. Especially young researchers have been able to benefit from targeted start-up funding, which allowed them to propel their potential."
Utzinger wants to use the R. Geigy Foundation to set the course for the future and address important issues such as climate change and health, rapid urbanization as well as general support to achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). -The R. Geigy Foundation, with its location in Basel and being a part of Swiss TPH, has an excellent reputation, thanks to the work of my predecessor Marcel Tanner,- said Utzinger.
25 years in the service of neglected diseases, people and health systems
The outgoing president, Marcel Tanner, developed Swiss TPH over 25 years and enabled the growth and strategic positioning of the R. Geigy Foundation. In funding, he established a balance between support for young researchers, innovative projects, and research-relevant technology and infrastructure.
"The greatest impact the R. Geigy Foundation has had has been in supporting numerous doctoral students from around the world," said Tanner. In recent years, the R. Geigy Foundation has provided seed funding for important innovative projects, such as those on urbanization, new One Health approaches, the widespread infectious diseases of poverty such as malaria, tuberculosis and neglected tropical diseases such as Buruli ulcer, schistosomiasis and sleeping sickness. Marcel Tanner will continue to remain with the foundation. "Even as President Emeritus, I will continue to devote myself to the Foundation." said Tanner.