From Ebola to an age of pandemics: Peter Piot in conversation with Larry Kramer
We hosted an exciting conversation with Peter Piot, one of the world's most influential voices in global health, as he reflected on a remarkable career spanning five decades at the forefront of humanity's battles against deadly diseases.
At just 27 years old, Piot co-discovered the Ebola virus in 1976, traveling to remote Zaire to investigate a terrifying new outbreak. That formative experience launched a lifetime of ground breaking work, from pioneering HIV/AIDS research in Africa in the 1980s to serving as the founding Executive Director of UNAIDS and UN Under Secretary-General, where he transformed the global response to AIDS and brought health to the highest levels of international policy. As former Director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Special Advisor on Global and European Health Security to the European Commission President, Piot has witnessed first hand how health systems have evolved, and where they've fallen short. From the early days of Ebola to the COVID-19 pandemic, his insights span the full arc of modern global health challenges.
In this candid dialogue with Professor Larry Kramer, LSE Vice Chancellor, Piot shared stories from the field, reflect on critical shifts in how the world responds to epidemics and global health challenges , and explored what must change as we enter what he calls an "age of pandemics." What lessons from past outbreaks remain unlearned? How do we build health systems resilient enough for tomorrow's threats? And how can science, policy, and solidarity come together to protect humanity's future?
A rare opportunity to hear from a living legend of global health.
About the speaker and chair
Peter Piot KCMG MD PhD was Director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and was the founding Executive Director of UNAIDS (1995-2008).
A clinician and microbiologist, he co-discovered the Ebola virus in 1976 and led pioneering research on HIV/AIDS and infectious diseases in Africa. He is a member of multiple national academies of medicine and science , and chairs several global health organisations. Professor Piot has received numerous awards including the Canada Gairdner Global Health Award, the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Research Award, and was named a 2014 TIME Person of the Year. He was made a Baron by the King of Belgium and awarded a UK knighthood. He has published over 600 scientific articles and 16 books, including his memoir No Time to Lose.
Larry Kramer is President and Vice Chancellor of the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is a renowned legal scholar and teacher, a former Dean of the Stanford Law School, and a former President of the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation.
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