This year marks the 150th anniversary of the discovery of Mycobacterium leprae, the causative agent of leprosy, by the Norwegian Dr. Gerhard Armauer Hansen on February 28, 1873.

To mark this historic anniversary, Sasakawa Leprosy (Hansen’s Disease) Initiative and the University of Bergen in Norway are organizing “The Bergen International Conference on Hansen’s Disease:150 Years Since the Discovery of the Leprosy Bacillus”on June 21-22, 2023.

As a prelude, we are holding two preparatory webinars on June 6 and 13.

In a webinar earlier this year, on the actual date of Hansen’s discovery in Bergen, we discussed what has happened in the 150 years since and how the history of the disease is being preserved and shared.  

In the next two webinars, we will look at what the 150th anniversary means for medical specialists and persons affected by leprosy from a medical and social perspective.

Each webinar will feature a presentation from a keynote speaker at the Bergen International Conference, the voices of persons affected by Hansen’s disease and a Q&A session with Mr. Yohei Sasakawa, the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination. For the Q&A session, we invite you to submit questions for Mr. Sasakawa using the Google form below.

We look forward to your participation.