Who we are

Professor Massimo Massi Benedetti, MD, Former IDF Europe Chair, is the President of the HUB for International health ReSearch-HIRS, and a member of national and international professional and non-professional diabetes associations. He was Chair of IDF Europe (1997- 2003), IDF Vice-President (2003-2009), Chairman of the IDF Science Task Force (2009-2012) and founder of the Members of the European Parliament Diabetes Working Group.

He is co-Chair of the ICHOM Standard Set of Person-centred outcomes for Diabetes Mellitus International Working Group. Prof. Massi Benedetti was member of the Faculty of Medicine and Chair of the Schools of Podology and of Nursing Sciences of the University of Perugia (I); Chair of the Umbria Regional Diabetes Reference Centre; Co-director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Diabetes Care Improvement and Director of Research and Education at Dasman Institute for Diabetes Research (Kuwait, 2007-2009).

His main areas of diabetes research are pathophysiology, new drugs, advanced systems for insulin delivery, complications, pregnancy, metabolic monitoring, epidemiology, diabetes registries and ethics.

Professor Antonio Ceriello is a renowned diabetes researcher and consultant, with over 500 original papers and numerous book chapters to his credit. Professor Ceriello has served as a consultant for the National Institutes of Health in the United States, focusing on cardiovascular disease and type 1 diabetes. He has also held key positions within prominent organizations such as the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD).

As an editor, Professor Ceriello has contributed significantly to the field, serving as an associate editor for “Diabetes Care” and “Diabetic Medicine,” and currently as the editor-in-chief of “Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice.” He has received numerous awards for his contributions, including the prestigious “Hellmut Mehnert Award” at the IDF 2017 Meeting.

Professor Ceriello’s expertise extends to the development of guidelines and recommendations, as he has been involved in various committees responsible for shaping guidelines related to diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and postmeal glucose management.

Mr. Chris J. Delicata, is actively involved in advocating for the Diabetes cause, both locally and internationally. His eldest son was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 1999 when he was just one year. This difficult episode in his life encouraged him to work wholeheartedly for diabetes.

From 2003 until 2015, Mr. Delicata was actively involved with the International Diabetes Federation serving as a board member (2003 to 2007); President / Regional Chair of the European Region of the International Diabetes Federation – IDF-Europe (2008-2012) and Vice President of the International Diabetes Federation (2013- 2015). During this period, he also served as a member of the Audit Committee and Chairman of the External Relations committee which included relations with potential sponsors and corporate partners.

Mr. Delicata was also a founding member of the European Coalition for Diabetes and served as Chairman from 2009 to 2012. In 2019 he was appointed as a trustee of the Alliance for European Diabetes Research (EURADIA) having previously served a three-year period as Honorary Auditor. In 2020 he was appointed as a trustee of the Foundation for European Nurses in Diabetes (FEND) and still serves as a trustee. He has also been Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Diabetes Global Network (PDGN) since 2015.

On a local level, Mr. Delicata has been actively involved in the Maltese Diabetes Association since 2001 and is currently President of the Association.

In 2011, he was awarded the CIVI Europaeo Praemium – European Citizens Prize by the President of the European Parliament Jerzy Buzek in recognition of his work to further promote the Diabetes cause in Europe. In 2017 he was given recognition by his hometown St. Julians in Malta with Gieh San Giljan which honours local citizens who have distinguished themselves in their community.

Mr. Delicata is an Insurance Practitioner by profession and is currently employed as a Senior Manager with one of the leading insurance companies in Malta.

Bastian Hauck is a professional sailor, author, entrepreneur – and type 1 diabetic. He is a member of the board of diabetesDE – German Diabetes-Aid, and founder of the #dedoc° Diabetes Online Community. The platform provides day-to-day, peer-to-peer motivational support for people with diabetes, with a strong focus on everyday life issues relevant to everyone living with a chronic condition like diabetes 24/7.

As a public speaker and diabetes advocate, Bastian promotes taking the patient’s voice seriously. The #dedoc° Diabetes Online Community translates the idea of traditional peer-to-peer support in chronic diseases such as diabetes to the online world, using social media and blogs to create strong, authentic, and self-sustaining patient communities.

Bastian holds a B.A. in Business and Economics (Private University of Witten/Herdecke, Germany, 2001), an M.A. in Middle East Studies (American University of Beirut, Lebanon, 2004), and was a scholar with the Postgraduate Program in International Affairs (Federal Foreign Office, German Academic Scholarship Foundation, Robert Bosch Foundation, 2004-2005). He worked for the German Federal Foreign Office (Berlin, 2004), the OECD (Paris, 2005), the United Nations (New York, 2005), and the German Council on Foreign Relations (Berlin, 2005-2008), then quit and took a three-year sabbatical at sea to sail around the world. His book and movie continue to motivate sailors and people with diabetes to follow their dreams.

Bastian lives and works in Berlin and Schleswig, where he runs a small shipyard. He also works as a consultant on patient-centered communication, blogger relations, and mental health solutions. At diabetesDE -German Diabetes Aid, he focuses on awareness campaigns and patient engagement.

Cajsa Lindberg is a global health advocate, advisor, public speaker and moderator who works with organizations such as IDF Europe, WHO, OECD, EU Diabetes Forum, Novo Nordisk and Roche.

Cajsa has been living with type 1 diabetes since the age of 13 and is also a brain cancer survivor living with multiple cancer-related complications and comorbidities. She uses her experiences to advocate for equitable access to medicines and healthcare, and ensuring increased patient involvement in decision-making foras.

She has served as president of various diabetes-related organizations including the Swedish Diabetes Association, the Swedish Diabetes Research Foundation, Ung Diabetes, and the IDF Young Leaders in Diabetes program.

When she’s not engaged in advocacy work, Cajsa works at the Swedish Trade and Invest Council as a senior consultant responsible for healthcare and life science in the Nordics.