In memoriam Prof. Dr. Frauke Ohl

Yesterday, January 28, 2016 our deeply valued Committee member Frauke Ohl has passed away at the age of 50. Although we knew that, due to a severe illness, this had become inevitable, the sad news of her death came too soon. We are deeply affected by this loss.

Originally trained as a zoologist in Kiel, Germany, Frauke Ohl was a member of the National Committee for the protection of animals used for scientific purposes (NCad) since it was established in December 2014. In addition, she was a professor in Animal Welfare & Laboratory Animal Science and Chair of the Department of Animals in Science & Society at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Utrecht University.

For the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, she fulfilled several advisory functions. She was, for example, Chair of the Dutch Council of Animal Affairs (Raad voor Dierenaangelegenheden, RDA).

Using her experience at, among others, the Dutch Council of Animal Affairs, Frauke has made a significant contribution to the establishment and visions of the NCad. She significantly contributed to the work of the NCad by using both her capacity to make strong analyses and her great awareness and sensitivity of issues that matter to society.

Frauke was not merely a colleague, in just a short period of time she became a friend to us all. She was cheerful and resourceful and she always thought in terms of solutions. By asking all the right questions, she would quickly get to the core of the matter.

Unfortunately, we have only been able to enjoy her insights and pleasant personality for a short period of time.

We will remember her kind personality, her great expertise and her team spirit.

Our thoughts are with her husband and her family.