Speakers at EBSA Thursday - BioEthics & Dual Use in relation to BioRisk

Dr. Rik Bleijs is head of the Biosecurity Office at the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in the Netherlands. In 2006 he joined the RIVM and started at the department of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) Office where he was involved in the biosafety aspects and the environmental risk assessment of medical and veterinary gene therapy studies. Since 2009 he is involved in the political and scientific implementation of a coordinated biosecurity policy in the Netherlands and the installment of a Biosecurity Office (2013). As head of the Biosecurity Office his main tasks are to advise the different ministries on biosecurity issues, to act as a bridge between the scientific biosafety and biosecurity professionals and the government, and to increase biosecurity and dual-use awareness among students, scientist and laboratory professionals. As a biosecurity expert he is also involved in various international biosecurity projects and initiatives (EU CBRN action plan, Global Health Security Agenda, Global Biosecurity Dialogue, G7, European Biosecurity Regulators Forum, Biological Weapons Convention), thereby supporting the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since 2021 he is co-chair of the International Experts Groups of Biosafety and Biosecurity Regulators (IEGBBR) representing the Netherlands and EU region. In the recent years he organized several capacity building workshops and meetings in Europe, Asia and Africa in the context of international projects to strengthen biosecurity and dual-use assessment global.