Population thinking – from the Black Death to COVID-19: Münchner Public Health Forum on 6 November 2025
What connects these two diseases? Prof. Dr. Alfredo Morabia will explore this question in his lecture
22.10.2025
Date and time: Thursday, 6. November 2025, 18:30–19:30
Location: LMU main building, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, München, room M014 (ground floor)
Registration: Not required. To support our planning, we kindly ask you to send a brief email to psph@ibe.med.uni-muenchen.de indicating your attendance.
What connects the Black Death with COVID-19? More than you might imagine.
Prof. Morabia will take us on a journey through centuries of public health history, revealing how population thinking transformed the way societies understand and respond to disease. He will trace how, from the era of medieval epidemics to modern pandemics, this collective perspective has shaped prevention strategies, public health systems, and our understanding of risk and responsibility. By connecting past epidemics to present-day global challenges, he shows why population thinking is not just a historical concept but remains a powerful and essential framework for addressing complex health crises.
About the speaker: Alfredo Morabia has led clinical and population-based research on both sides of the Atlantic and served for a decade as Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Public Health. His books – including The Public Health Approach: Population Thinking from the Black Death to COVID-19 (Johns Hopkins University Press) – bring history, science, and society together in a way that makes complex ideas accessible and relevant. Prof. Morabia is a renowned scholar and dynamic speaker, but also a dedicated admirer and expert of the work of Max von Pettenkofer, Munich’s pioneer of public health. We are delighted to have him as a member of the PSPH Scientific Advisory Board. This event is part of the PSPH Special Guest Residency 2025 featuring our guest, Prof. Alfredo Morabia.