“Humanity is opening two Pandora’s boxes simultaneously – artificial intelligence and climate change – and the survival of the human species will depend on how we handle these two challenges.” 

This is an excerpt from scholar and space scientist Stamatios Krimigis’ speech during the public session of his establishment as president of the Academy of Athens for 2024. The message of his speech can be summarized in one phrase: “There is no Noah’s Ark to board. If we do not manage to preserve this planet, if we do not protect Earth, the human race will be lost”. 

Stamatios Krimigis was born in Chios, studied in the United States as the son of immigrants, and completed his doctoral dissertation at the University of Iowa, where he later taught as a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. You can read more about Stamatios Krimigis here. He is a founding member of the NGO “Komvos-Node: Networks of Global Hellenism,” as is Michalis Tiverios, who was also established as vice president of the Academy of Athens for 2024 during the same session. 

Brief History of the Academy of Athens 

The Academy of Athens was founded in 1926, following 100 years of efforts, shortly after the beginning of the liberation struggle against the Ottomans. The first Bureau was composed as follows: President – Phokion Negris, Vice President – Georgios Chatzidakis, General Secretary – Simos Menardos, Secretary for Minutes – Kostis Palamas, Secretary for Publications – Georgios Drosinis.  Immediately after its establishment, it became a member of the International Union of Academies and the International Council for Science Associations.