New President for Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

The new President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (RSAS) or Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien (KVA) is Professor Christina Moberg, Royal Institute of Technology (Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan, KTH), Stockholm, Sweden, began her term on July 1, 2015, and will take over the position from Barbara Cannon. The President is the foremost representative of the Academy, leading its meetings.

An important aspect for her is to concentrate on basic research to find solutions for as yet unidentified questions and fulfil the needs of future generations. See sees a risk in putting too many resources into contemporary problems.

Also on July 1, Professor Göran K. Hansson, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, Sweden, began his term as Permanent Secretary. He will take over from Staffan Normark. The Permanent Secretary leads the Academy’s activities, is the head of the Academy’s secretariat, and is responsible for ensuring that the decisions of the Academy Board are enacted.

Christina Moberg, born in 1947, studied chemistry at Stockholm University, Sweden, and gained her Ph.D. in 1975 from KTH under the supervision of Professor M. Nilsson. After a short stay with Professor J. Normant, Université Paris 6, France, and postdoctoral work with Professor B. Åkermark, KTH, she was appointed Assistant Professor at KTH in 1978, Associate Professor in 1989, and became Full Professor in organic chemistry there in 1997. Currently, she heads the organic chemistry department.

Christina Moberg’s research deals with asymmetric catalysis, focusing on new selection methods for producing molecules with specific qualities, which are of great significance in the production of pharmaceuticals, for example. She has been awarded the Göran Gustafsson Prize in Chemistry for her achievements in synthetic organic chemistry and has received an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Science at Lund University, Sweden.

Göran K. Hansson, born 1951 in Lysekil, Sweden, gained his Ph.D. in histology from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1980. After postdoctoral work at the University of Washington, Seattle, USA, he became Associate Professor for histology at the University of Gothenburg in 1981. In 1994, he was appointed Professor of Experimental Cardiovascular Research at the Karolinska Institutet.

Hansson works on research into the immune system’s role in cardiovascular disease. His discoveries include how cholesterol build-ups in the blood vessels can activate the immune system, leading to inflammation and the formation of blood clots.