An experienced leader, Gun Peggy Knudsen, comes from the position of Deputy Director at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI).
Photo: FHI.
The Norwegian Veterinary Institute – Veterinærinstituttet - has announced the appointment of Gun Peggy Knudsen as Chief Executive Officer. The new CEO will begin her six-year term on January 1, 2025. She will then take over from Øyvind Fylling-Jensen, who currently serves as acting CEO.
"The Veterinary Institute is gaining an experienced leader in Gun Peggy Knudsen, who understands the institute's mission well. I look forward to working with her in the future," said Fylling-Jensen, commenting on the appointment of his replacement.
When Gun Peggy Knudsen takes office in January, Fylling-Jensen - who was involved in the hiring process - will return to his position as Chairman of the Board, which he had temporarily left to assume the position of interim CEO following the resignation with immediate effect of the previous Chief Executive Officer, Torill Moseng, last January.
Gun Peggy Knudsen is an experienced leader who comes from the position of Deputy Director at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) where she has had a long career, starting as a researcher in psychiatric genetics in 2008. Since 2014, she held roles as Director of the Biobank Department, Health Data and Digitalization, and Infection Control, Environment, and Health. In recent years, Knudsen has served as Deputy Director and acted as Director of the Institute.
Moreover, she holds a master's degree in Chemical Engineering from NTH and a PhD in Medical Genetics from the University of Oslo and also completed the Norwegian Defence Leadership Program in 2022.
"With her broad experience in areas relevant to the Veterinary Institute, significant leadership experience, and a strong understanding of our societal mission, she is someone who will help to further develop the institute in a positive way," Acting Board Chair, Inger Solberg, said about her. "Knudsen also has substantial experience in digitalization, which will make her a valuable asset to the Veterinary Institute's digitalization efforts."
The Norwegian Veterinary Institute's new CEO also expressed her satisfaction with her appointment. "I am really looking forward to leading the Veterinary Institute at a time when its mission is more important than ever. I am excited to work on tasks related to knowledge development and preparedness, and to get to know the highly skilled teams," Gun Peggy Knudsen stated.
Ingunn Sommerset takes over as Norwegian Veterinary Institute's Fish Health and Welfare Department after Edgar Brun.
In addition, changes and appointments are also taking place in the Norwegian Veterinary Institute's Fish Health and Welfare Department. Starting October 1, Ingunn Sommerset has been named acting Department Director replacing Edgar Brun who has reached retirement age.
Brun has led the Veterinary Institute's operations in the so-called 'blue' sector since 2017, and before that, he led the Epidemiology Section for several years. He is now relinquishing his position to Sommerset, although he will not be retiring completely, but will be leading the Veterinary Institute's work with NORAD and international partners on several fish health projects in Africa and Latin America for a while longer.
"It has been an interesting time, with fish health and welfare gaining much more attention. Going forward, I believe there will be a lot happening in management, in the industry, and at the Veterinary Institute. Exciting times are ahead, but it’s time to make way for younger forces," Edgar Brun said, assessing his career.
His replacement, Ingunn Sommerset, whose position will be announced through normal procedures over the next year, has until now been leading the Veterinary Institute's Section for Research on Aquatic Biosafety. In addition, she has also been the editor of the Fish Health Report and, in her new role, will assume the position of senior editor of the report.
Continuing the changes in the Department of Fish Health and Welfare, the Norwegian Veterinary Institute also announced that Kari Nordheim will take over as acting Section Head for Aquatic Biosecurity Research, and Torfinn Moldal, one of the Veterinary Institute's two fish health specialists, will take over as editor of the next Fish Health Report 2024.