Marleen Temmerman has long been a world authority thanks to her unyielding fight for women's rights and health. Now there is additional recognition as a new member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. And that as the first Belgian woman.
The inauguration of the new members took place on 30 September at MIT in Boston. Emeritus professor Temmerman is only the 17th Belgian, and the very first Belgian woman and UGent'er, to receive membership of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS). An exceptional recognition that she shares with renowned (mostly American) academics and prominent figures from the science and art world. Writer Salman Rushdie and actress Glenn Close are also among the new members.
The AAAS is one of the most prestigious organizations in the world that recognizes leading figures in science and the arts. By bringing its members together to discuss and publicize ideas, opportunities and difficulties, it tries to bring about improvements in the world.
Marleen Temmerman dedicated her career to the fight for women's rights and health. First at Ghent University, where she took on a prominent role in gynaecology at Ghent University Hospital, then as a driving force behind the International Center for Reproductive Health at Ghent University. She later became Director at the World Health Organization (WHO), and then in Kenya, where she continues to serve as Director of the Center of Excellence in Women and Child Health at the Aga Khan University, and AKU-UNESCO Chair.