Invited speaker at the Workshop ‘Ethical aspects of stem cell repositories and data bases’
European Commission
Bruxelles, 17 February

Invited speaker the consensus conferences of the EUROSTEM project
‘Guidelines on human stem cell research’
Athens, 8-10 October

Co-organizer of the session ‘Socializing Stem Cells’ at the joint conference of the Society for the Social Study of Science and the European Association for the Study of Science and Technology
Paris, 26-28 August

Member of the Scientific Committee of Observa - Science in Society, an Italian research centre and observatory on the social integration of scientific development

Invited member of the Harvard University-John Fitzgerald Kennedy School of Government focus team "Reframing Rights: Constitutional Consequences of Biotechnological Change"
April

Co-organizer of the first European workshop on Science and Narratives
Embryos and plots: public lectures on science and narratives (Embrioni e trame: Lezioni aperte tra scienza e narrazione)
Holden School of creative writing and narrative studies
Turin, Italy
22-26 March

2003

Winner of the Branco Weiss Fellowship "Society in Science", a pioneering intiative of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich to foster an interdisciplinary approach to life sciences and their place in society

Invited speaker at the Summer Workshop 2003 on Science and Social Responsability
The Hastings Center for Bioethics, Garrison, NY, 27-30 June

Member of the European federation of Biotechnology Task Group on Public Perception of Biotechnology

2002

Founder and Chairman of the Dresden Forum on Science and Society of the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, which aims at promoting public awareness and discussion on the social relevance of life sciences

Invited speaker at the EMBL/EMBO Conference on the Biosciences and Society "Infectious Diseases: Challenges, Threats and Responsibilities"
EMBL, Heidelberg 8-9 November

2001-1998

Member of the Science and Society Committee at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), an initative of the EMBL to improve communication and mutual understanding on relevant topics of the life sciences.
The initiative includes a seminar series where distinguished speakers are invited to give public lectures, and regular reading clubs.

Award of a grant from the European Commission to participate in the conference "Stem Cells: Therapies for the Future?", organized by the European Commission and the scientists of the Life Sciences High Level Group.
Brussels, December 2001

Co-organizer and speaker at the EMBL Forum on Science & Society Symposium "Stem Cell Research and Therapeutic Cloning: Scientific and Social Implications"
EMBL, Heidelberg, 16 June 2001

Co-organizer of the First European PhD Symposium
"From Genes to Thoughts"
EMBL, Heidelberg, 20-21 October 2000