European Centre for Disaster Medicine – CEMEC

Prof. Roberto Mugavero is President of the European Centre for Disaster Medicine (CEMEC), a specialised centre operating within the framework of the Council of Europe’s EUR-OPA Major Hazards Agreement. He holds a degree in Environmental Engineering and serves as Director and Professor at the Centre for Security Studies (CUFS), University of the Republic of San Marino.

Prof. Mugavero is actively engaged in international academic and professional environments related to security, disaster risk management, and CBRNe preparedness. He collaborates with several universities and institutions, including the University of Rome “Tor Vergata,” the University of Rome “Sapienza,” and the University of Padua, and contributes to educational and training programmes at the NATO School in Oberammergau and the NATO Joint CBRN Defence Centre of Excellence in the Czech Republic.

He is also Chair of the Observatory on Security and CBRNe Defence (OSDIFE) in Italy and contributes to European and international research initiatives related to security governance, crisis management, and risk reduction.

In addition to his academic and research activities, he serves as a volunteer officer in the Italian National Fire and Rescue Service (Ministry of Interior) and actively participates in emergency exercises and operational preparedness activities. His work combines research, training, and policy dialogue aimed at strengthening preparedness and resilience against complex threats.

Prof. Alessandro Balducci is Secretary General of the European Centre for Disaster Medicine (CEMEC) and a senior medical specialist with extensive experience in clinical medicine, healthcare leadership, and medical education.

He served for many years as Director of the Complex Operative Unit of Nephrology at San Giovanni Addolorata Hospital in Rome and holds the title of Primario Emerito. Throughout his career he has played an important role in the development of clinical governance frameworks and specialist medical training within the Italian healthcare system.

Prof. Balducci has also held prominent roles in professional medical organisations, including serving as Secretary of the Italian Society of Nephrology and President of the Italian Kidney Foundation.

Within CEMEC he contributes to the strategic development of training and capacity-building activities in disaster medicine, supporting initiatives aimed at strengthening healthcare preparedness, medical response systems, and international cooperation in health emergencies.

Dr. Lamia Bezer is a medical doctor and senior health programme manager with more than a decade of experience leading complex health operations in fragile and high-risk environments and collaborates with CEMEC for health emergency operations and humanitarian response.

She served as National Health Cluster Coordinator for the World Health Organization in Ukraine, coordinating large-scale humanitarian health responses involving national authorities, UN agencies, and hundreds of international and national partners.

Her professional background includes multiple leadership roles with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), including trauma hospital management in frontline environments and coordination of medical operations in complex humanitarian emergencies. She has also contributed to global health programmes with international humanitarian organisations focusing on strategic health programming, monitoring and evaluation, and crisis management.

Her expertise combines operational field experience with strategic health coordination in large-scale emergencies.

Health emergency coordination; humanitarian health systems; trauma and emergency care systems; mass casualty preparedness; humanitarian operations management; monitoring, evaluation, and quality assurance in health emergencies.

Dr. Pietro Costanzo

Senior Advisor – European Centre for Disaster Medicine (CEMEC)

[email protected] [email protected]

Dr. Pietro Costanzo is a lecturer at the Centre for Security Studies (CUFS), University of the Republic of San Marino, and collaborates with CEMEC in the development of research and training activities in the fields of crisis management and security governance.

A lawyer by training with postgraduate specialization in criminal investigation methodologies and strategic information management, he has more than fourteen years of experience in international programme management and operational coordination.

He has contributed to more than forty international initiatives focusing on training, institutional capacity building, operational planning, and strengthening response capabilities in complex security and emergency contexts across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
His work focuses on the integration of legal, operational, and institutional approaches to crisis management and the development of interoperable response frameworks.

Crisis management; civil–military cooperation; operational planning and capability development; security governance; intelligence and sensitive information management; emergency response coordination; operations management; monitoring, evaluation, and quality assurance in health emergencies.