| FEBRUARY 2008 VISITING SCHOLAR: JAMES ORBINSKI
 Associate Professor of Medicine and Political Science at University of Toronto
A medical doctor with extensive field experience with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF - “Doctors Without Borders”), James Orbinski was elected international president of the organization from 1998 to 2001, and launched its global Access to Essential Medicines Campaign in 1999. In 1999 he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to MSF for its pioneering approach to medical humanitarianism, and most especially, its commitment to witnessing. Dr. Orbinski has represented MSF in numerous humanitarian emergencies and on critical humanitarian issues in the Sudan, Kosovo, Rwanda, Afghanistan, and numerous other countries. From 2001 to 2003 he became chair of MSF's Neglected Diseases Working Group that created the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), a global not-for-profit drug development enterprise that develops drugs and other health technologies for diseases largely neglected by profit driven research and development companies. James Orbinski is also the co-founder and Chair of the Board of Directors of Dignitas International, a medical humanitarian organization working with communities to dramatically increase access to life-saving treatment and prevention in areas overwhelmed by HIV/AIDS.
Dr. Orbinski received his MD degree from McMaster University in 1990, and Masters in International Relations form the University of Toronto. His research interests focus on medicine and humanitarianism; the emerging discipline of global health; and equitable access to health care and health care technologies. Dr. Orbinski is part of a team of scholars at the University of Toronto that is developing a multidisciplinary PhD training program in Global Health.
UMN presentation: February 6, 2008, 4:00 pm, Cowles Auditorium
Topic: Humanitarianism and Civil Society: Which Way Forward?
Synopsis: Civil society has been a vital force in shaping public health locally and internationally. Dr. Orbinski will explore civil society activism from a historical, contemporary and social justice perspective. He will discuss access to essential medicines in the context of the emerging discipline and practice of global health. |
