Physicist Marcelo Knobel, former dean of Unicamp, is the new executive director of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). Headquartered in the city of Trieste (Italy), the international entity is linked to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and its mission is to promote scientific development in countries of the Global South. To this end, it operates on four main fronts: research, education, policy and diplomacy. “This is an entity that really works to give visibility to the efforts of scientists from these countries, strengthening science in their countries,” summarizes Knobel.
A professor at the Gleb Wataghin Institute of Physics (IFGW) at Unicamp, the new leader of TWAS took office earlier this month in Italy, after participating in a selection process that included participants from all over the world. Replacing Indian scientist Atish Dabholkar, Knobel will lead the organization's programs that seek to leverage global action in the scientific advancement of developing countries. "As director of the academy, I will seek resources to continue its work and expand its programs, in addition to seeking more partnerships and other ways to fulfill the institution's mission," he says.
Associated with TWAS since 2007, initially as a young member, the now executive director, in November of this year, was appointed fellow The organization was founded in 1983 by Pakistani physicist Abdus Salam (a Nobel Prize winner) and has over 4 members from over XNUMX countries. His term at the institution, which will last for a minimum of two years, will also include directing the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD), the first forum for women scientists from countries in the Global South. At the same time, the professor will lead the Inter-Academy Partnership (IAP), a global network of institutions that work to provide independent consulting expertise in the areas of science, technology and health.
Knobel thus becomes the main intellectual, strategic and operational leader of TWAS. For the physicist, his experience as the Dean of Unicamp, between 2017 and 2021, not only influenced the choice of his name for the new position, but will also help him in the work of garnering supporters for the organization's initiatives. "I am proud to be representing Unicamp at such an important institution in the world. I believe that all our work as Dean in terms of seeking resources, especially during the pandemic, influenced my choice and will help now. As well as the creation of the Sérgio Vieira de Mello Chair, with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and other programs aimed at caring for people who work with science in vulnerable countries."
A member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (ABC) and the Academy of Sciences of the State of São Paulo (Aciesp), Knobel was the 12th rector of Unicamp and in 2023, after the end of his term, he assumed the presidency of Insper – a higher education and research institution based in São Paulo. He received the José Reis Prize for Scientific Dissemination from the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), the Young Scientist Award from TWAS (Latin America and the Caribbean); the Zeferino Vaz Prize from Unicamp; and the insignia of Commander of the National Order of Scientific Merit, conferred by the Presidency of the Republic.
During Knobel's term as rector of Unicamp, measures were implemented that promoted significant changes in access to the University, with emphasis on ethnic-racial quotas and the Indigenous Entrance Exam. His administration was also marked by the creation of the Executive Directorate of Human Rights (DEDH) and the Institute of Advanced Studies (IdEA). The creator of the University's Exploratory Science Museum, the professor has always been dedicated to scientific dissemination, having been editor-in-chief of the journal Science & Culture, from the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC).
