About Congress Organisers

The 14^th WCB, to be held in Bengaluru, Karnataka, has been co-organised by Forum for Medical Ethics Society (FMES), Sama Resource Group for Women and Health, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences, and Society for Community Health Awareness Research and Action (SOCHARA).

The Forum for Medical Ethics Society, Mumbai

Founded in 1993 by a group of medical practitioners disillusioned by unethical medical practice, it evolved into a wider umbrella group for individuals from diverse backgrounds interested in bioethics. FMES publishes Indian Journal of Medical Ethics (IJME), the only indexed and peer reviewed leading journal on bioethics in India and South Asia. In 2005, it established a platform, namely National Bioethics Conference (NBC), for reflection, debate and coming together of people interested in the improvement of the healthcare system. Since then NBCs are organised every two years. So far six such NBCs have been organised, each attracting between 350 to 700 participants. They are co-hosted by various entities – academic institutes, and non-government organisations; and FMES in different cities of India. Although called National Bioethics Conference, it does attract participants from the South Asia region as well as from the Global North.

Sama Resource Group for Women and Health, New Delhi

Sama is a Delhi based health resource group that works on health and human rights that evolved from the people's health movement and women's health movement in India. Sama works towards expanding the discourse on bioethics through its intersections with different areas of the organisations' work – ethics vis-à- vis clinical research/trials, Assisted Reproductive Technologies and Surrogacy, gender biased selection, sexual and reproductive health rights, gender based violence and other public health issues. Sama has also been involved in policy processes to strengthen ethical guidelines for: medical practice, conduct of and participation in clinical trials, access to care and medicines, etc. Sama also has previous experience of organising International Conferences as well as National Conferences/Consultations

St John's National Academy of Health Sciences, Bengaluru

St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences is run by the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) as an apex institution of the health endeavours of the Catholic church which now number in excess of 3500 member institutions scattered across India. The medical college was started in 1963, and was followed by the establishment of a nursing college, a dedicated research institute and an institute of allied health sciences. The motto of the academy is derived from the inspiration of Christ and is a constant reminder to the staff and students that they are God's collaborators in their care of human lives and are instruments of healing, dependent on the divine. St. John's strives to train and encourage health care professionals to reach out to the medically underserved of the nation. In this effort, it has succeeded in harmonizing dedication to excellence with commitment to social justice in health care. Medical ethics has been at the core of its curriculum – it was the first medical college in India to initiate medical ethics as an integral part of the training of students.

Society for Community Health Awareness Research and Action (SOCHARA), Bengaluru

Society for Community Health Awareness Research and Action (SOCHARA) is an independent non-government organisation registered under Karnataka Societies Registration Act 17A (1960). SOCHARA and its functional units have promoted a people-centred paradigm for health and development, envisioned through a community health movement and a community health approach to public health problems. Two decades into its inception, SOCHARA continues to participate and strengthen health movements in India and around the world, supporting and engaging with people, communities, professional bodies and governments for equitable health and development, towards the goal of 'Health for All'.