This is a working brief for the speakers and chair of the Life Science Diplomacy and Scientific Sovereignty panel at the Prix Galien USA 20th anniversary forum, held at The New York Academy of Medicine on October 29, 2026. It sets out the schedule and venue details, the panel format and speaker roles, a detailed conversation framework with suggested questions, and biographies of the five…
This is a speaker brief for a panel titled Life Science Diplomacy and Scientific Sovereignty, part of the Prix Galien USA 20th anniversary forum on October 29, 2026 at The New York Academy of Medicine in New York. It is written for the panelists and the chair, and covers logistics, format, the discussion framework and speaker biographies.
The logistics section gives the day's timing from 7:30 to 17:00, places the panel at 9:55 to 10:50 in Hosack Hall, and notes the Green Room reporting time, coat check and security arrangements. It also lists the President's Dinner at the Harvard Club on October 28 and the awards gala at the American Museum of Natural History on October 29, with dress codes for each.
The format section explains that the panel is an open conversation without PowerPoint, on the record and video recorded. It defines the chair's role of drawing out panelists and keeping time, the expectation that speakers give specific examples rather than organizational backgrounds, and the social media hashtag and channels to use.
The conversation framework argues that past health achievements were built across borders by scientists and companies rather than by treaty, that capability has since redistributed, and that biotechnology is now treated as a strategic sector through export controls, investment screening, data localization and procurement restrictions. It sets out what the room should take away and a run of show with opening remarks, tailored questions, a question to the whole table and a closing wish for the…
The brief also lists unproductive threads to avoid, such as litigating competition or the economics of Chinese in-licensing, and gives tailored questions for each panelist: Phyllis Arthur of BIO on antimicrobial resistance and pathogen surveillance, Jean-Frédéric Paulsen of Ferring on private ownership, Andrew Plump of Takeda on jurisdiction, and Samantha Du of Zai Lab on cross-border collaboration.
The final section holds biographies of the speakers, including Phyllis Arthur's career at BIO and earlier at Merck's vaccine division, and Samantha Du's biochemistry doctorate, work at Pfizer and founding of Zai Lab.