Page 72 - IFSO-History-Book-Digital-File

19 - Natan Zundel 2015-2016 USA

Professor Zundel trained in Bogotá, Colombia, where he served as
a consultant for the Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá, before
relocating to the US. He holds academic appointments as Clinical
Professor of Surgery at both Florida International University and
the University at Buffalo, New York, and serves as Medical Director
of the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at Jackson North Medical
Center in Miami, Florida. Considered one of the top laparoscopic
surgeons in the world and a dedicated educator, Zundel has
served as a founding, active, or honorary member of surgical
societies in more than 45 countries. He was President of the World
Congress of Endoscopic Surgery in 2012 and President of the
IFSO Latin American Chapter (IFSO-LAC) from 2013-2015,
organizing and presiding over the sixth IFSO Latin American
Congress in Los Cabos, Mexico. Following his regional leadership,
he served as the President of IFSO from 2015-2016, later receiving
the IFSO Surgical Innovator Award and an IFSO Life Membership
in 2022. His expansive leadership also includes serving as
President of the International Federation of Societies of
Endoscopic Surgeons (IFSES) from 2020 to 2023 and as Governor
of the American College of Surgeons, South Florida Chapter.

20 - Kelvin Higa 2016-2017 USA
Professor Higa trained at UCLA and built a career as a pioneer of
minimally invasive and revisional MBS in California’s Central
Valley, performing the region’s first laparoscopic gastric bypass in
1998. He is globally renowned for developing the "Higa
technique," a fully hand-sewn gastrojejunal anastomosis
designed to reduce stricture rates, and for his mastery of complex
revisional procedures. He served as President of ASMBS from
2007-2008, as well as president of its California chapter and its
Foundation. Higa served as President of IFSO from 2016-2017.
Academically, he serves as Clinical Professor of Surgery at UCSF
Fresno, directing the fellowship program. Higa has received the
ASMBS Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award and Lead Award
for Excellence in Clinical Care, along with the IFSO President’s
Award, and holds honorary memberships in surgical societies
across Mexico, Spain, Colombia, and India, including as Honorary
President of Sri Aurobindo Medical College.

70