21. October 2024 | Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour, Faculty of Philosophy, Seminar für Medien- und Kommunikationswissenschaft, Education, School, and Behaviour, Knowledge, Spaces, and Media, Research, Personalia

Professor Cornelia Betsch appointed to the German Ethics Council

Cornelia Betsch, Professor of Health Communication and Director of the Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour at the University of Erfurt, has been appointed to the German Ethics Council by Bundestag President Bärbel Bas.

Betsch will therefore be a member of the independent Expert Council for the next four years. This council monitors ethical, social, scientific, medical and legal issues as well as the probable consequences for individuals and society that arise in connection with research and developments, particularly in the field of life sciences and their application to humans. The committee has 25 members – scientists from various fields – nominated by the Federal Government and by the "Bundestag".

Professor Cornelia Betsch: "It is a great honour for me to be able to contribute to this committee. I am delighted that the perspective of psychology and the social and behavioural sciences is being strengthened in this way. I am particularly interested in topics in the field of planetary health – how we humans influence the planet and how this affects our health. I am sure that many topics will unfold in this area over the next four years."

Professor André Brodocz, Vice President for Research and Career Development at the University of Erfurt, is also delighted: "We congratulate our colleague Cornelia Betsch on this appointment, which is a great social honour for her scientific work. We are also proud of this as a university. It also encourages us not only to conduct research with renowned academics on socially relevant issues, but also to contribute these findings to public debates and thus make an important contribution to the challenges of our time."

... deals with the big questions of life. With its statements and recommendations, it provides guidance for society and politics. The members are appointed by the President of the German Bundestag. The German Ethics Council was constituted on 11 April 2008 on the basis of the Ethics Council Act and succeeded the National Ethics Council established by the Federal Government in 2001. To date, the German Ethics Council has drawn up 23 comprehensive opinions, including on the topics of anonymous child abortion, intersexuality, pre-implantation diagnostics, genetic diagnostics, patient welfare and big data. Current topics include artificial intelligence and climate ethics. Cornelia Betsch had already contributed to the most recently published statement on climate justice. The German Ethics Council has thus established itself as a source of inspiration for advising both politicians and the general public.