Presented as part of the McCloskey Speaker Series.
Peter Hotez, M.D., Ph.D., professor and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, joins the Aspen Institute for a keynote lecture on the intersection of science, medicine, and public trust. A leading authority on vaccines and neglected tropical diseases, Hotez reflects on the challenges facing public health today, the growing politicization of science, and what it will take to rebuild trust in scientific institutions in the years ahead.
Paepcke Auditorium, doors at 5:00 pm
Registration
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required, and capacity is established on a first-come, first-served basis. Once an event is at capacity, we will have an in-person waitlist at the door.
Public registration is now open for summer 2026. Please click here to register.
Parking
Parking is very limited. Please carpool, walk, bike, or ride RFTA.
Book signing will immediately follow the event. To learn more about his book or to order a copy, please click here.
“Science is indeed under siege, and that’s not good for any of us. Here, Peter Hotez and Michael Mann name names. They describe the role of Russia; the Supreme Court Justices, who’ve lost sight of the forest for the disappearing trees; and the like-minded officials who promote nutty conspiracy theories. It’s not too late to do something; it’s time to get things done. Read on.”―Bill Nye, science educator
“An important contribution to the current debate about the role of science in political discourse.”―Financial Times (Best Books of 2025)
Prof. Peter Hotez, MD, PhD, DSc (hon), FAAP, FASTMH, is Professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine where he is also Co-Director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, and Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine. He is also University Professor of Biology at Baylor University, Senior Fellow in Disease and Humanity at the James A Baker III Institute for Public Policy. Dr. Hotez is a vaccine scientist, biochemist, and pediatrician who has led or co-led the development of vaccines for parasitic infections-hookworm, schistosomiasis, Chagas disease-currently in clinical trials, and several coronavirus vaccines, including two low-cost COVID vaccines for global health so far administered to 100 million children and adults in India and Indonesia. He is also an ardent vaccine advocate and science explainer who combats anti-science and antisemitism in America, and globally.
Prof. Hotez has authored 6 single-authored books with Johns Hopkins University Press, including “Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel’s Autism,” “Preventing the Next Pandemic,” and “The Deadly Rise of Anti-science,” and most recently, in September 2025, he co-authored “Science Under Siege” with the climate scientist Michael Mann. Dr. Hotez obtained his B.A. (phi beta kappa) from Yale University, M.D. from Weill Cornell Medical College, and Ph.D. from Rockefeller University. He obtained his pediatric residency and fellowship training from Massachusetts General Hospital and Yale School of Medicine.
Prof. Hotez is the author of more than 700 scientific papers, and he is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has received numerous awards. They include the Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award from AAAS, the Scientific Achievement Award from the AMA, the David E Rogers Award from the AAMC, the Science and Society Award from Sigma Xi, the Porter Prize in public health from the University of Pittsburgh, Winslow Medal from Yale School of Public Health, Mendel Medal in science and religion from Villanova University, Milton Popkin Award from the ADL Southwest, LBJ Moral Courage Award from the Holocaust Museum Houston, Walker Prize from the Boston Science Museum, and Smith Medal in Public Health from the NY Academy of Medicine. He was named TIME MagazineHealth100 in 2024 and one of 25 Global Leaders for U.S. News and World Report in 2025.
He has three honorary Doctor of Science degrees. Prof. Hotez served as US Science Envoy for the Middle East and North Africa in 2015-16, and he appears frequently on national media to explain biomedicine and pandemics.
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