President of the Academia Europaea
Biography
Marja Makarow is President of Academia Europaea since 2022. She is Professor Emerita of Applied Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the University of Helsinki and a cell biologist. Her research focused on chaperone-assisted folding and secretory pathway of glycoproteins. She has supervised 19 PhD students to degree and supported 50 more as Director of the Life Science doctoral school of the University of Helsinki. Her past positions are Director of Biocenter Finland (2016-2021), Vice-President of the Finnish Research Council - Academy of Finland (2012-2016), Chief Executive of the European Science Foundation ESF in Strasbourg (2008-2011) and Vice-President for Research of the University of Helsinki (2003-2007). She is current and past Board and International Advisory Council member of several European top universities. She chaired and vice-chaired, respectively, the Founding Boards of the Tampere University, Aalto University, launched in 2019 and 2010. She also chaired the Founding Board of the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland FIMM, a member organization of the Nordic EMBL Partnership of Molecular Medicine. She has carried out evaluations of research quality and impact at all levels, from individual grants and Centers’ of Excellence to universities’ research quality and national research & innovation systems. She served as Panel Chair of the Starting Grant Programme of the European Research Council ERC. Marja Makarow is Board member of the European Innovation Council EIC, and former Governing Board member of the European Institute for Innovation and Technology EIT and Chair of the Board of Technology Academy Finland that awards the global Millennium Technology Prize for ground-breaking research-based innovations. She advised the EC Commissioner of Research in the European Research Area Board ERAB and the Finnish Government in the Prime Minister’s Research and Innovation Council, and chaired the Board of NordForsk governed by the Nordic Council of Ministers. Marja Makarow is Doctor h.c. of Tampere University and Aalto University and Chevalier de l’Ordre de Legion d’Honneur, France, and Commander of the Order of the White Lion, Finland.