From Central Office
From the President
Dear Colleagues, As the new ISBT President, it is a privilege to be able to share a few words with the readers of Transfusion Today. Mid-2026 is a busy time with a lot of change and revitalisation for ISBT.
Lin Fung ISBT President
In June this year we experienced a very successful ISBT Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with 2606 registrations from 100 countries, and we had the invaluable support of 83 exhibitors. At the General Assembly, we saw the retirement of some Board members. I want to say a special thank you to Michael Busch, Gwen Clark, Katherina Pavenski, Jose Eduardo Levi and Maha Badawi for their dedication, contribution and their friendship.
Did you know that the terms of all board positions are intentionally staggered? This ensures that there we retain corporate knowledge, have continuity, while integrating vital new energy, expertise and perspective to fulfill our mission and vision.
The Regional Directors provide a vital link to members and associates across the various WHO regions. Therefore, I am delighted to welcome five new Regional Directors: Arwa Al-Riyami (Eastern Mediterranean), Brian Custer (North America), Katja van den Hurk (Europe), Kazuhiko Ikeda (Western Pacific) and Silvina Kuperman (Latin America).
Arwa Al-Riyami (Eastern Mediterranean)
Brian Custer (North America)
Katja van den Hurk (Europe)
Kazuhiko Ikeda (Western Pacific)
Silvina Kuperman (Latin America)
They join our experienced Regional Directors: Marion Vermeulen (Africa), Mickey Koh (Europe), Satyam Arora (South-East Asia) and Yanli Ji (Western Pacific). And we are bolstered with the experience and capabilities of board members in new positions: Christian Erikstrup (President Elect), Jill Storry (Secretary General), Nelson H. Tsuno (Junior Vice-President) and of continuing board members: Cynthia So-Osman (Snr Vice-President), Martin Smit (Treasurer) and Pierre Tiberghien (Past President).
The end of July will be a bittersweet time as we say a very special thank you to our Executive Director Jenny White who will be retiring. Anyone who has interacted with Jenny will know her dedication to ISBT and would have experienced her thoughtfulness and willingness to help. This is not goodbye but rather we look forward to working with you again in a different capacity. In our search for a new Executive Director, we received 19 applications from individuals from every WHO region, with more than half considered as “capable” for the role. This strong response highlights the strong reputation and appeal of ISBT to medical and managerial talent worldwide. Something that all of us can be proud of. After a careful and thorough process there was unanimous decision to appoint Karin van den Berg as our new Executive Director. We are delighted to have Karin at ISBT as she brings substantial leadership experience and blood transfusion expertise to ISBT. I hope I speak for the Board, the Executive Director and the Central Office when I say that we are looking forward to fulfilling ISBT 2026-2030 Strategy together with you toward “A world of safe, sufficient and evidence-based blood therapies.”
Lin Fung, ISBT President
