The Foundation Board

The current Foundation Board consists of 10 members from the healthcare sector and one legal member with an advisory role in legal matters.

Their extensive experience and in-depth knowledge strengthen the Swiss Kidney Foundation in its commitment to health.

Member of the Foundation Board

Olivier Bonny
Titel Prof. Dr med Dr phil nat
First name Olivier
Family name Bonny
Year of birth 1969
Experience in the field or focus of activities
  • Basic research into kidney diseases (kidney stones).
  • Long-term care of people suffering from kidney diseases
Previous activities, if relevant Secretary & President, Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN)
Current activities Head of the Service of Nephrology, HFR, Freiburg
Voluntary activity
  • None at present
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board President
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) SSN Member
Citation “Alone we go fast, together we go further.”
Sibylle Tschumi
First name Sibylle
Family name Tschumi
Year of birth 1976
Experience in the field or focus of activities
  • Paediatric and adolescent medicine
  • Specialty title Paediatric Nephrology
Current activities Head of Paediatric Nephrology Unit, Inselspital Bern
Voluntary activity None at present
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Vice-President
Representation Pediatric Nephrology
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) SSN Member
Citation “I am invigorated by a short walk with friends and family every day.”
François Verrey
First name François
Family name Verrey
Year of birth 1954
Experience in the field or focus of activity After a few years as a doctor, including in nephrology, worked for many years as a lecturer in physiology and researcher (professor at the UZH) in the field of epithelial physiology, in particular the transport of salt and amino acids in the kidneys.
Previous activities, if relevant Director of National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) Kidney.CH, Director of Institute of Physiology of the University of Zürich, President of Swiss Society of Nephrology and the Swiss  Physiological Society.
Current activities As Prof. emeritus, also active for other foundations: Member of the Board of Trustees and Secretary of the Health Sciences e-Training (HSeT) Foundation, Head of the continuing education program ‘Translational Nephrology’ (CAS/DAS of UZH and Unibe), President of the jury for the prizes for translational medical research of the Fondation Leenaards.
Voluntary activity
  • Head of the CAS/DAS ‘Translational Nephrology’ (UZH, Unibe, ZKC, HSeT)
  • Member and Secretary of the Board of Trustees and the Executive Committee of the HSeT Foundation
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Member of the Foundation Board
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) retired SSN member
Citation “Joy in nature and life in a dynamic balance is healthy”
Pietro Cippà
First name Pietro
Family name Cippà
Year of birth 1982
Experience in the field or focus of activity Clinical nephrologist, basic researcher
Previous activities, if relevant
  • Head of Nephrology Department, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Lugano
  • MD/PhD Nephrology and Immunology, University of Zürich
  • postgraduate training in Internal Medicine and Nephrology at University Hospital Zürich
  • Postdoc, Regenerative Nephrology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA
Current activities
  • Professor of Nephrology, University of Basel
    Head of Transplantation Immunology and Nephrology, University Hospital Basel
  • Key research interests: transplantation, acute renal insufficiency.
Voluntary activity
  • SSN Board – President
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Member of the Foundation Board
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) President SSN
Citation “A healthy life is a collection of happy moments”
Ulrich Hänsenberger
Year of birth 1965
Experience in the field or focus of activities SNS Foundation Board 2019 bis 2022
Current activities Owner of Hänsenberger GmbH, legal services and consulting
President of the ACS Bern section
Board of Directors Quantex AG Bern
Managing Director 22 Bikes GmbH Bern
Voluntary activity with various associations
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Legal advice
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Non-member
Citation “Health is a gift that not everybody receives.”
Dusan Harmacek
First name Dusan
Family name Harmacek
Year of birth 1988
Experience in the field or focus of activity Nephrology
Current activities Senior Physician Nephrology, University Hospital Zurich
Voluntary activity President Young Swiss Nephrology (YSN)
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation of Young Swiss Nephrology (YSN) of the SSN
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Member SSN – YSN
Quote “Live and let live”
Sabine Herzig
First name Sabine
Family name Herzig
Year of birth 1978
Experience in the field or focus of activities Worked for many years as a qualified nurse and specialist carer nursing and advising people with chronic kidney disease.
Experience of teaching and training specialist nurses with the focus on chronic diseases and renal insufficiency
Previous activities, if relevant Caring for people with kidney disease as a specialist nurse on the nephrology ward at Inselspital Bern, Switzerland.
Current activities  
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation Nursing
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Non-member
Citation “Finding pleasure in the little things helps you to focus on the positive.”
Thomas Hunziker
First name Thomas
Family name Hunziker
Year of birth 1956
Experience in the field or focus of activity ADPKD, care of patients prior to transplantation, family support
Previous activities, if relevant  
Current activities
  • Board of Swiss Kidney Patients Association
  • Member of the nephrology quality group
Voluntary activity
  • Vice-president, Verein obere Bahnhofstrasse Affoltern am Albis, trade
  • Chef, Kulturkeller LaMarotte
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation Renal Patients Association (VNPS) together with Andrea Schäfer
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Non-member
Citation “I live healthy and enjoy the present and listen well to my body”
Salome Bolt
Year of birth 1993
Experience in the field or focus of activities Several years of experience in the nutritional-therapeutic care of patients with kidney disease in inpatient and outpatient settings.
Member of the SVDE Nephrology Section German-speaking Switzerland
Current activities Head of nutritional counseling at St. Gallen Cantonal Hospital with specialist responsibility in nephrology
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation of nutrition counseling
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Non-member
Citation “You don’t have to be great to start. But you have to start to become great”
Andrea Schäfer
First name Andrea
Family name Schäfer Affentranger
Year of birth 1961
Experience in the field or focus of activity
  • Supporting kidney patients on issues concerning living on dialysis or with a transplant.
  • Providing information and organising information events for kidney patients. Organising activities to promote organ donation.
Previous activities, if relevant Co-founder and President of the “Transplanted Sports Association Switzerland”
Current activities – Member of the nephrology quality group
– Member of the “Swiss Kidney Biopsy Register”
Voluntary activity President VNPS (Swiss Kidney Patients Association)
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation Renal Patients Association (VNPS) together with Thomas Hunziker
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Non-member
Citation “Give man a dog and his soul will be healed”
Seraina von Moos
Title PD Dr. med.
First name Seraina
Family name von Moos
Year of birth 1981
Experience in the field or focus of activities Nephrology with focus on post-transplant care
Previous activities, if relevant Medical studies & Master studies Biology/Immunology University of Zurich
Advanced training in internal medicine and nephrology
Senior physician at the University Hospital of Zurich
President and co-founder of Young Swiss Nephrology
Current activities Senior Physician Cantonal Hospital Lucerne
Function/representation on the Swiss Kidney Foundation (SKF) Board Representation German-speaking Switzerland
Function in the Swiss Society of Nephrology (SSN) Member SSN
Citation “Confidence and serenity are important supports of our mental and physical health”

Former members of the Foundation Board

Alfred Bär, Oberwil BL
Dr. Isabelle Binet, St. Gallen
Professor Andreas Bock, Aarau
Professor Michel Burnier, Lausanne
Ursula Dietrich, Bern
Walter Geiser, Dornach
Professor Jean-Pierre Guignard, Lausanne

Pandora Kunz Notter, Bern
Professor Pierre-Yves Martin, Genf
Professor Heini Murer, Beckenried
Professor Bernard Rossier, Lausanne
Dr. Carlo Schönholzer, Breganzona
Professor Jürg Steiger, Basel
Lilian Weisbrod, Bern

«I live healthy and enjoy the present and listen well to my body»

Thomas Hunziker, Member of the Foundation Board