Ismail Serageldin

Ismail Serageldin is the director of the Library of Alexandria in Egypt. He chairs the Boards of Directors for each affiliated research institutes and museums and is a distinguished professor at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. He serves as chair and member of a number of advisory committees for academic, research, scientific and international institutions and civil society efforts, including the Institut d'Egypte (Egyptian Academy of Science), Third World Academy of Sciences, the Indian National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. He is former chairman of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (1994-2000) as well as founder and former chairman of the Global Water Partnership (1996-2000) and the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest, a microfinance program (1995-2000).

Serageldin has also served as vice president for Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development (1992-1998), and for Special Programs (1998-2000) at the World Bank. He has published over 50 books and monographs and over 200 papers on a variety of topics including biotechnology, rural development, sustainability and the value of science to society. He holds a Bachelor of Science in engineering from Cairo University and a master’s degree and a Ph.D. from Harvard University. He has received 18 honorary doctorates.