Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz appointed Prof. Jerzy Duszyński President of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Duszyński was elected for the term 2015-2018 on March 19 in a secret ballot by the members of the General Assembly of the Polish Academy of Sciences. But - according to the Law on the Polish Academy of Sciences of 2010 - the successful candidate is formally appointed President of the Polish Academy of Sciences by the Prime Minister.

Prof. Jerzy Duszyński (born in 1949) is a biochemist. He works at the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology PAS in Warsaw, where during the last term he was dean of the Department of Biological and Agricultural Sciences. In 2008-2009 he was Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Donald Tusk’s government.

Current vice president of PAS, Prof. Mirosława Marody from the Faculty of Philosophy and Sociology, University of Warsaw also campaigned for presidency of the Academy. Finally Prof. Duszyński won with 111 votes. Prof. Marody received 68 votes.

"I think I have a very hard time ahead of me, but I\'m an absolute optimist. I believe the Academy is very much needed in the system of science in Poland. But for it to remain needed, it must change a bit. We need to significantly increase our presence in the European programs, work on the promotion of scientific excellence, expressing opinions that are of interest to the people. We will focus on doing these things" - Prof. Duszyński told reporters shortly after the election.

Prior to the appointment by the Prime Minister, the Minister of Science and Higher Education Lena Kolarska-Bobińska met with Duszyński. "We talked about the changes that await the Academy" - tweeted the minister.

One of the urgent tasks facing the new President of the Polish Academy of Sciences, will be averting a difficult situation at the Institute of Economics PAS in Warsaw. As a result of the conflicts in the institute, the Scientific Council of the Institute of Economics decided to dismiss its director, Dr. Cezary Wójcik. This decision has yet to be approved by the new President of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Prof. Jerzy Duszyński will replace Prof. Michal Kleiber, who was President of the Polish Academy of Sciences for two terms, since 2007.

The new president of the Polish Academy of Sciences is an expert in the field of energy metabolism and molecular basis of mitochondrial diseases and neurodegenerative disorders.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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