Damer Blake
Following a PhD focused on bacterial genetics from the University of Aberdeen, Damer began working in the area of poultry gut health in 2001 at the Institute for Animal Health (IAH, UK). During his time at IAH he carried out fundamental and applied genetics-led research into coccidiosis, contributing to the Eimeria genome sequencing consortium and working towards new, cost-effective anticoccidial vaccines.
Dawid e. Swayne
Dr. David E. Swayne is a veterinarian with specialization as a Veterinary Pathologist and Poultry Veterinarian. For the past 39 years, his personal research has focused on control of avian influenza. He serves in a leadership role at OFFLU, the WOAH and FAO network of animal influenza experts. Previously, he served for 28 1/2 years as the Laboratory Director and a scientist at the Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory of the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Athens, Georgia, USA and for 7 years as a tenured faculty member at The Ohio State University.
Okan Elİbol
Dr. Okan Elibol obtained his Ph.D. degree with the thesis on “Incubation management” at the Dep’t of Animal Science of Fac. of Agriculture in Ankara University, 1997. He has been working for the same Institution as professor of Poultry Science since 2009. His primary research topics are on incubation management, factors affecting successful embryo development and the role of the incubation on chick quality and broiler performance.
Rafiqul Islam
Prof. Md Rafiqul Islam is a veterinary pathologist with special interest in avian pathology. He has recently retired as a Professor of Veterinary Pathology from Bangladesh Agricultural University. He is currently working as the Senior National Technical Advisor (One Health) at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in Bangladesh. Prof. Islam is an avian pathologist, obtained his PhD from the University of Liverpool, UK. He was a Humboldt Fellow at the Institute of Virology, University of Leipzig, Germany.
Richard Ducatelle
Graduated as veterinarian from University of Ghent in Belgium in 1978. He then completed a PhD in veterinary pathology in 1983. He was a scientific advisor to the Belgian government from 1984 to 1989 and has been Professor in Veterinary Pathology at the University of Ghent from 1989 till 2020. He has been a member of the board of directors / executive board of Ghent university from 2008 till 2020. He is diplomate of the ECVP and of the ECPVS. He was President of WVPA Belgian branch from 1991 till 2024.
Sjaak de Wit
DVM, PhD, EBVS® European Specialist in Poultry Veterinary Science
Sjaak gained his veterinary qualification at the University of Utrecht in 1989 and completed a PhD degree concerning diagnosis and transmission of infectious bronchitis virus, in 1997 at the University of Utrecht. He is senior researcher at Royal GD and professor Integrated Poultry Health at the veterinary faculty of the University of Utrecht. Since 2023, he is president of the World Veterinary Poultry Association.
Keynote speakers are listed alphabetically by name.
