Prof Ismail Serageldin, Chairman

Director, Library of Alexandria, Egypt, previously Vice-President World Bank

Ismail Serageldin is Director of the Library of Alexandria in his native Eygpt and Distinguished University Professor at Wageningen University in The Netherlands. Prof. Serageldin has served in a number of capacities at the World Bank, latterly as a vice president with briefs on environmentally and socially sustainable development, and special programmes. He is also a member of advisory committees for several academic and scientific institutions, including the Indian National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. He served as chairman of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) from 1994-2000. Prof. Serageldin has written more than 45 books and monographs and over 200 papers on a variety of topics including biotechnology, rural development, sustainability, and the value of science to society.