Distinguished Research Scholar
Dr. Eric Meslin’s 35-year long career spans clinical, academic, government and not-for profit settings, the common thread running through his career is a focus on ethical, social and policy implications of health, science, and technology with a particular expertise in genomics, global health, science policy and human research.
In 2023, Dr. Meslin stepped down after 8 years as President and CEO of the Council of Canadian Academies, a not-for-profit organization conducting assessments of policy topics for the Government of Canada, after overseeing more than 35 projects ranging from climate change to artificial intelligence, and medical assistance in dying to autonomous transportation.
Dr. Meslin trained in philosophy and bioethics at York University (BA) and Georgetown University (MA, PhD), and in governance at the Institute for Corporate Directors, University of Toronto (ICD.D). After completing his PhD, established the Clinical Ethics Centre at Sunnybrook Health Science Centre and collaborated with Peter Singer and Fred Lowy to create the University of Toronto Centre for Bioethics (now the Joint Centre for Bioethics). Following a year in Oxford at Green College and the John Radcliffe Hospital, Dr. Meslin returned was appointed Bioethics Research Director of the Ethical Legal and Social Implications (ELSI) program in the early years of the Human Genome Project at the NIH.
From ELSI, Dr. Meslin was appointed as Executive Director of the U.S. National Bioethics Advisory Commission, established by President Bill Clinton to provide advice to the White House and the US Congress on stem cell science, cloning, international clinical trials, genomics, and related topics.
At the close of the Clinton administration, he was recruited to Indiana University where he enjoyed the next 15 years as Founding Director of the Indiana University Center for Bioethics, Associate Dean for Bioethics in the IU School of Medicine, and a tenured Full Professor of Medicine, and of Philosophy with cross appointments in Medical & Molecular Genetics, Bioethics & Law, and Public Health. Dr. Meslin was appointed IU’s first Endowed Professor of Bioethics in 2012 and has published more than 200 articles, book chapters, and two co-edited books. He has held academic positions at the University of Oxford, the University of Western Australia, and Université de Toulouse, the latter as Pierre de Fermat Chaire d’Excellence. He is currently Adjunct Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health University of Toronto, Senior Fellow PHG Foundation University of Cambridge, and Visiting Scholar at the Centre of Genomics and Policy at McGill University.
He has advised several international research and policy organizations including Genome Canada, OECD, WHO, UK Biobank, CDC, Canadian Stem Cell Network, UNESCO, Ditchley Foundation. Among his many honours Dr. Meslin is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, and The Hastings Center. He is also a Chevalier de l’Ordre Nationale du Mérite (Knight of the National Order of Merit) for contributions to French bioethics policy.
Selected Publications
Contact Information
E-mail: emeslin1020@gmail.com
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy
P.O. Box 016960 (M825)
Miami, FL 33101
