Speakers, Special Guests and Organisational Team

Speakers & Special Guests

Christoph Franz

Chairman of the Board of Directors, Roche

“Power is to be in a position to bring together many people from different backgrounds and cultures to work as one to make a difference for patients’ lives.”

Peggy Grueninger

Head of Corporate Donations & Philanthropy, Roche

“Power is a responsibility.”

Helga Rabl-Stadler

President, Salzburg Festival

“To me, power means an opportunity to shape reality. Without power, I cannot change my working environment for the better."

Sylvia Cremer

Professor, IST Austria (Institute of Science and Technology Austria)

“The power of insect societies emerges from the collaborative actions of the community.”

Fritz Hauser

Artist

“Power is a dangerous tool: Handle with care, respect, and love!”

Salome Schneebeli

Choreographer

“For me, power is the awareness of one's own strength. Power is when you have the possibility and the freedom to use your personal skills. This means to be aware of your own strength, to be in control of your energies and to use them efficiently - reaching a balance of control and consciousness. Power is responsibility. Power is the ability to bring everything together while being flexible at the same time. At this very moment the thought of power provokes the idea in me to create the most delicate and best articulated choreography, which is reduced to a minimum - to its very essence - and creates at the same time a maximum of strength.”

Gisou van der Goot

Head of the Laboratory of Cell and Membrane Biology, and founding member of the Global Health Institute (GHI), School of Life Sciences, at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne/EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne)

Dean of the School of Life Sciences, EPFL

Read more at https://vdg.epfl.ch/

“Power evokes a sense of force, and what comes to my mind is the power of people, the capacity of individuals to make a change at whatever scale - themselves or the entire world.”

Marina Bacac

Senior Principal Scientist and Head of Cancer Immunotherapy Department 2 (CIT-2), Roche Innovation Center Zürich

"I normally refer to persistence, passion and enthusiasm to express the power of doing things. The word power somehow evokes a negative feeling inside me as I think there are more subtle ways of being powerful. If power could always be used to improve things, create beauty and prevent suffering, then it would be the most beautiful word on the earth!"

Roger Dawson

Principal Scientist, Therapeutic Modalities, Roche Innovation Center Basel

“Plentiful meanings of the word power exist, however, often overlooked is the power within. The inner power that permits creating an idea that can possibly influence and change the world to the better.”

Raj Harapanahalli

Vice President and Head of the Software Center of Excellence, Diagnostics Information Solutions, Roche Diagnostics

“Power is one's ability to influence and inspire people to create a positive impact in our environment and/or society.”

Anja Harmeier

Investment Manager, Roche Venture Fund

“Using creativity and uniting skills for breaking down barriers, that is power.”

Uwe Junker

Therapeutic Area Leader for Immunology, Inflammatory and Infectious Disease Discovery & Translational Area (I3 DTA), Roche Innovation Center Basel

“The word power invokes both positive and negative connotations. On the positive side I see it as the power to create and innovate for a better world.”

Marco Prunotto

Senior Clinical Scientist, Roche

“Power = potential of people around me”

Astrid Ruefli-Brasse

Senior Group Leader, Molecular Targeted Therapies, Roche Innovation Center Basel

“Power to me means being able to push ideas forward that lead to new discoveries which ultimately improve human lives, whether through science, medicine or art. Power is combining your own findings and observations with those of others and putting them together in a new way to create a greater understanding. This inspires me to keep my eyes and mind open to new ideas and to listen, dream and create.”

Holmfridur (Frida) Thorsteinsdottir

Project Manager, Informatics, Roche Innovation Center Basel

"Power does not exist in isolation and it's not a characteristic attribute of any one individual. Power is permutable and expandable. What inspires me the most is power as empowerment, the ability to influence and inspire others, so that the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. This in turn breeds an environment where there is an opportunity to create, the chance to implement changes for the better, and the possibility to have a positive influence in the world."