The Unither Baruch Blumberg Lecture is part of the Distinguished Virology Lecture Series, one of the most prestigious events in the University of Oxford academic calendar. The Baruch Blumberg Lecture series is aimed at a general audience to raise awareness of important developments, past and present, in virology. This lecture has been delivered by various scientists and public health pioneers, such as Anthony Fauci, Charles Rice, Ian Wilson, Harald zur Hausen and Donald A Henderson.

Prof. Koopmans was invited to give this lecture because of her many contributions to our understanding of the ecology, epidemiology and evolution of zoonotic disease outbreaks from Avian Flu to MERS, Zika, Ebola and COVID-19. During the lecture prof. Koopmans shared her vision for pandemic preparedness and her insights as member of the WHO-team that looked into the origins of COVID-19.