Dr. Werb will draw from his recent book, The Invisible Siege: The Rise of Coronaviruses and the Search for a Cure, noting that the story of the COVID-19 pandemic extends far further back in time than many realize. He traces the rising threat of the coronavirus family and the attempts by a small group of scientists who worked for decades to stop a looming viral pandemic. The Invisible Siege is a powerful look at the infuriating factors that threaten to derail discovery and leave the world vulnerable to the inevitable coronaviruses to come.

About the guest speaker

Dan Werb, PhD, is an award-winning writer and epidemiologist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Salon and other publications. He is the author of the recent book, The Invisible Siege: The Rise of Coronaviruses and the Search for a Cure, and has authored over 100 epidemiological studies investigating the link between the spread of disease and social conditions.

He is an Associate Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto and at the Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Public Health at the University of California San Diego.