Appointment of Interim SETAC Europe Executive Director

We previously announced that Bart Bosveld, the long-time SETAC Europe Executive Director (SEED), plans to step down in early 2025 to focus on his role as SETAC Global Executive Director. 

While the first steps are already being taken to launch an open search for a permanent SEED, we are pleased to announce that the SETAC Europe Council (SEC) has appointed Karel De Schamphelaere as the interim SETAC Europe Executive Director (iSEED) for the period from mid-February 2025 until May 2026, following the SETAC Europe Annual Meeting in Maastricht. The appointment of an iSEED helps ensure continuity of operations in the SE office and of SE activities, including the organisation of annual meetings, workshops and other member services.

De Schamphelaere will take on the iSEED role as a part-time occupation, similar to his predecessor in recent years. He will retain his tenured position as a professor in environmental risk assessment at Ghent University, which will be reduced from full-time to part-time during his role at SETAC. 

De Schamphelaere is not new to SETAC nor SETAC governance. The upcoming SETAC Europe 35th Annual Meeting in Vienna, Austria, will mark his 25th consecutive SETAC Europe annual meeting as a participant. He co-chaired the 2017 SETAC Europe annual meeting in Brussels and has served for nine years as a board member of the SETAC Europe Council, as well as five years on the SETAC World Council, including one year as president of each council. He brings valuable institutional knowledge of SETAC and its core science, as well as an understanding of the legal and financial obligations of non-profit organizations in Belgium, where SETAC Europe is incorporated. 

In his role as iSEED, De Schamphelaere’s main responsibility, in collaboration with the SEC, the other SETAC Executive Directors, and the fantastic SETAC staff, will be to support the delivery of governance, activities, events and services for the members of SETAC. To achieve this, Bosveld and De Schamphelaere are already working together to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities. 

Meanwhile, the SEC will continue the search process for a permanent SEED, with the aim of installing this person into office by June 2026. Should you have any questions related to this appointment or the search for a permanent SEED, please contact [email protected]. We look forward to seeing many of you in Vienna or at other SETAC events in 2025.