| FORMER DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS PRESIDENT JAMES ORBINSKI WILL TALK ABOUT MEDICAL HUMANITARIANISM
 The Sawyer Seminar series continues with a lecture on “Humanitarianism and Civil Society” by Professor James Orbinski at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, February 6, in Cowles Auditorium. Orbinski is a professor of public health at the University of Toronto and the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize winner as president of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières. His talk will look at the citizen movements to deliver medicine to those in need. The event is free and open to the public.
A medical doctor with extensive field experience with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF“ Doctors Without Borders”), Orbinski served as international president of the organization from 1998 to 2001. He launched the organization’s global Access to Essential Medicines Campaign in 1999, later accepting the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to MSF for its pioneering approach to medical humanitarianism. Orbinski also serves as 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.
The Sawyer Seminar is funded through a generous grant from the Mellon Foundation. It is organized by the University of Minnesota in partnership with various units, including the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, the Department of Political Science, and the College of Liberal Arts. The Sawyer Seminar provides a critical exploration of the historical development and practices of international humanitarianism. In addition to public programming, the Sawyer Seminar supports a postdoctoral fellowship and two doctoral fellowships.
January 23, 2008 |
