Our people
Board of Directors
The Board of Directors governs the Foundation in accordance with its articles of association and byelaws. It currently consists of three members, including a sarcoidosis patient and a family member of a sarcoidosis patient:
Mr Jules Prast (1961), chairman and treasurer*. Jules is a former journalist and served as a commissioned officer in the air force. He worked as a civil servant in the Ministry of Finance in The Hague, and as a business executive in banking and industry. He has extensive working experience in many countries across the world and used to live and work in London.
Mr André Manning (1967), vice-chairman. André is a former business executive with Royal Philips and Booking.com. He used to live and work both in Eastern Europe and in the United States. He is employed as a consultant and an interim manager, currently advising Tata Steel.
Mrs Karin Schrage (1968), secretary. Karin is a former Press and PR officer, a civil servant in the Ministry of Economic Affairs in The Hague, and a digital and social media consultant. She grew up in Greece and Nigeria and lived and worked in Vienna and Brussels.
Mr Arend Jan Boekestijn (1959), board member. Arend Jan is a former Member of Parliament in the Netherlands and an expert in European affairs, defence and international aid. He used to live and work in Florence, Italy. Currently he is a geopolitics lecturer at Utrecht University, a host of two current affairs radio shows and a guest speaker and consultant.
* The Foundation’s articles of association allow the chair and vice-chair of the Board of Directors to combine their roles with the offices of either the secretary or the treasurer, or to appoint a board member both as secretary and treasurer. No board member can, however, hold more than two offices at the same time.
Scientific Advisory Board
The Scientific Advisory Board advises the Board of Directors about research policies, priorities and opportunities; initially it will focus on the design of a draft European Sarcoidosis Research Agenda, which will be circulated for discussion among the medical and scientific communities, and other stakeholders.
Chairman
Jan Grutters MD PhD
Pulmonologist, ILD Centre of Excellence, St Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, Netherlands
Professor of Insterstitial Lung Diseases, Utrecht University Medical Centre, Utrecht, Netherlands
Secretary (and vice-chairman)
Marcel Veltkamp MD PhD
Pulmonologist, ILD Centre of Excellence, St Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, Netherlands
Members
Johan Grunewald PhD
Professor Emeritus of Experimental Pulmonary Medicine, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
Dominique Israël-Biet MD PhD
Professor Emeritus of Respiratory Diseases, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France
Martin Petřek PhD
Professor of Pathophysiology, Olomouc University Hospital, Olomouc, Czech Republic
Antje Prasse MD PhD
Professor of Pulmonology, Basel University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
Paolo Spagnolo MD PhD
Professor of Respiratory Medicine
Padua University Hospital, Padua, Italy