‘Liesbet Geris, Steve McQueen and Bianca Stigter are each in their own way an inspiration to many,’ says UvA rector magnificus Peter-Paul Verbeek. ‘What they have in common is that the social impact of their work is exceptionally large. The scientific significance of their work, for medicine/computational science and the cultural and media sciences, respectively, is also of great value. I am therefore proud that we will soon be able to call Geris, McQueen and Stigter honorary doctors of the UvA.’

Liesbet Geris

Prof. Liesbet Geris is professor in Biomechanics and Computational Tissue Engineering at the University of Liège and the KU Leuven. She is also the director of the Virtual Physiological Human institute.

Geris conducts research in the field of in-silico medicine. Based on computer calculations, she develops a digital representation of a human health or disease state and brings it into clinical practice. This is often referred to as the ‘Virtual Human Twin’ and Geris is the face of this work and a tireless ambassador for it. She creates virtual twins (digital models) of people, that can accurately imitate both physical and biological processes of the human body. The ultimate goal is to improve healthcare by simulating personalised treatments before they are applied to a real patient. Geris currently leads a large European project in which a roadmap for the Virtual Human Twin is being realised, and in which attention is being paid not only to the work’s clinical-scientific aspects, but also to its legal, ethical, and socio-economic facets.

‘Liesbet Geris is a connector par excellence; she brings together stakeholders: the clinical and academic community, companies, European politicians, and drug authorities such as the EMA and the FDA. She is the driving force behind the Virtual Human Twin manifesto, which the UvA and Amsterdam UMC have also signed,’ says honorary supervisor Alfons Hoekstra. ‘She has been very successful in bringing her work to the attention of both the general public and politicians,’ adds fellow honorary supervisor Henk Marquering. ‘That is of great importance, because in silico medicine and the Virtual Human Twin are crucial for more precise diagnoses, better prevention of diseases and the optimisation of medical treatments.’

Honorary supervisors are Prof. Alfons Hoekstra, professor of Computational Science & Engineering at the Faculty of Science, and Prof. Henk Marquering, professor of Translational Artificial Intelligence at the Faculty of Medicine.

Steve McQueen and Bianca Stigter

Steve McQueen is a filmmaker, screenwriter and visual artist. Bianca Stigter is a historian, journalist, writer and filmmaker. McQueen has made various artworks using film and installations, many of which have been acquired by leading museums around the world. In 2008, he wrote and directed his first feature film Hunger, and in 2013 his film 12 Years A Slave was released, later winning three Oscars. Stigter, who studied History at the UvA, writes for NRC Handelsblad, among other publications. She was associated with 12 Years a Slave as a producer. She is the maker of the documentary Three Minutes, A Lengthening (2021), which was shown at almost all of the major film festivals (Venice, Sundance, Toronto). In that film essay, Stigter examines a fragment of a family film shot in 1938 in a Jewish community in Poland, to reflect on the Holocaust, time and what film can mean. In 2005, her book Occupied City: Map of Amsterdam 1940-1945 was published. That was followed by three collections of essays about art and history. In 2019, she published Atlas of an Occupied City. Amsterdam 1940-1945. Based on this book, McQueen and Stigter made the 4.5-hour documentary Occupied City together. The film recently won three Golden Calves at the Netherlands Film Festival: Best Long Documentary, Best Photography and Best Editing.

Historical sources and events form the basis for much of McQueen's work. He thereby gives new meaning to these sources and to material heritage, such as urban locations where historical violence has taken place. His work highlights, among other things, the continuing consequences of slavery and racism in various contemporary contexts. With her historical research, particularly on Amsterdam during the Second World War, Stigter offers an important popular scientific contribution to the debates and culture around remembrance. In Three Minutes and Occupied City, she shows how many histories are hidden in seemingly unimportant archive material. By doing so, she also sheds new light on historical source material and on film and film history.

‘McQueen and Stigter have each earned their own stripes. They bring major social issues and political and historical themes to the attention of a large audience,’ says honorary supervisor Patricia Pisters. ‘Their documentary Occupied City has a double historical value: Amsterdam’s past in the Second World War is history, but the present that is discussed is also already becoming history. In the documentary we see major events and the impact they have on Amsterdam: the outbreak of the corona pandemic, the lockdowns and protests, the apologies for slavery, climate activism, Black Lives Matter demonstrations, the war in Ukraine. The combination in which two historical lines come together makes the film unique and monumental.’

Honorary supervisor is Prof. Patricia Pisters, professor of Film Studies at the Faculty of Humanities.