Pamela Rendi-Wagner facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Pamela Rendi-Wagner
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Rendi-Wagner in October 2021
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| Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control | |
| Assumed office 17 June 2024 |
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| Preceded by | Andrea Ammon |
| Chair of the Social Democratic Party | |
| In office 24 November 2018 – 3 June 2023 |
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| Preceded by | Christian Kern |
| Succeeded by | Andreas Babler |
| Minister of Health and Women | |
| In office 8 March 2017 – 18 December 2017 |
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| Chancellor | Christian Kern |
| Preceded by | Sabine Oberhauser |
| Succeeded by | Beate Hartinger-Klein |
| Member of the National Council | |
| In office 9 November 2017 – 30 June 2023 |
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| Nominated by | Christian Kern |
| Affiliation | Social Democratic Party |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Joy Pamela Wagner
7 May 1971 Vienna, Austria |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Michael Rendi |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | University of Vienna (MD) London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (MSc) |
Pamela Rendi-Wagner (born Joy Pamela Wagner on May 7, 1971) is an important Austrian doctor and politician. She is currently the director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Before this, she led the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) from 2018 to 2023. She was the first woman ever to be in charge of the SPÖ.
From 2011 to 2017, she worked as a top official for public health in Austria's Ministry of Health. She also served as the Minister for Health and Women for a short time in 2017. Rendi-Wagner was elected to the National Council, which is like Austria's parliament, in 2017. She became the leader of her party in parliament in 2018. In June 2024, she started her new role as Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Pamela Rendi-Wagner, whose birth name was Joy Pamela Wagner, was born in Vienna, Austria. She grew up in the Favoriten area of the city. Her parents were Wolfgang and Christine Wagner. After her parents divorced, she lived with her mother.
She went to high school at GRG 12 Erlgasse and finished in 1989. Then, she studied medicine at the University of Vienna and became a doctor in 1996. She continued her studies in London, focusing on "Infection and Health in the Tropics." She earned a master's degree in 1997. She also received a special diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
Career in Health and Medicine
In 1998, Pamela Rendi-Wagner returned to the University of Vienna. She worked in different departments, focusing on preventing diseases and tropical medicine. From 2002 to 2003, she worked at the Kaiser Franz Josef Hospital. She also worked at the Medical University of Vienna and the Centre for Travel Medicine. She became an expert in preventing specific diseases and tropical hygiene.
As a project leader, she helped create a system to track important infectious diseases. Her research also helped change the recommended time between tick vaccinations from three to five years. In 2008, she became a university lecturer in her field. She then worked internationally as a scientist, studying how infections spread, how vaccines prevent them, and travel medicine.
Between 2008 and 2011, Rendi-Wagner was a guest lecturer at Tel Aviv University in Israel. From 2012 to 2017, she taught at the Medical University of Vienna. From 2011 to 2017, she led the Public Health and Medical Affairs section in the Ministry of Health. She also chaired the Office for Safety in Health Care.
Political Journey
In 2012, Rendi-Wagner joined a group linked to the SPÖ political party. In March 2017, she became the Minister for Health and Women. She took over after the previous minister, Sabine Oberhauser, passed away. She served in the government led by Christian Kern, who was the Chancellor at the time. She officially joined the SPÖ party just before becoming a minister.
In October 2017, she was elected to the National Council. She left her ministry role in December 2017 when the government changed. After that, she became the SPÖ's spokesperson for health. She also joined several important committees in parliament.
Leading the Social Democratic Party
In September 2018, Christian Kern announced he would step down as the SPÖ leader. The party then chose Pamela Rendi-Wagner to take his place. On November 24, she was officially confirmed as the leader with a very high number of votes (97.8%). She made history as the first woman to lead the SPÖ.
She said she wanted the party to be modern and open-minded. She aimed for the party to give clear answers and stand for fairness and equal chances for everyone. She wanted to show a clear difference from other parties without always disagreeing with the government. She mentioned she wasn't a "fan of the left-right split," suggesting she wanted to move the party more towards the middle.
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In May 2019, the SPÖ chose Rendi-Wagner to be their main candidate for the 2019 federal election. The party received 21.2% of the votes, which was a lower result than before. However, it remained the second-largest party and the biggest opposition party. In the new parliament, Rendi-Wagner became the SPÖ's spokesperson for foreign policy. She also became the chairwoman of the foreign affairs committee.
Challenges and Changes
In February 2020, the SPÖ asked its members what they thought of Rendi-Wagner. The results were announced in May: 71.4% of members approved of her leadership. She then said she would continue as party leader. She presented a plan called "New Solidarity for Austria." This plan focused on making the welfare system stronger, especially in health and care. It also aimed to create more jobs and make taxes fairer.
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A poll in January 2021 showed that Rendi-Wagner was the most popular politician in Austria. During a political crisis in late 2021, she criticized the government for being too focused on itself during the COVID-19 pandemic. She called for new elections once the pandemic situation improved.
In mid-2023, Rendi-Wagner faced a leadership election within the SPÖ. The results were announced on May 22, 2023. She came in third place with 31.35% of the votes. The next day, on May 23, 2023, Rendi-Wagner announced that she would step down as party leader and parliamentary group leader. She stayed in her role until a new leader was chosen. At a party meeting on June 3, 2023, Andreas Babler was declared the new leader of the Social Democratic Party of Austria after a recount of the votes.
Personal Life
Pamela Rendi-Wagner's mother was a kindergarten teacher. Her father, Wolfgang Wagner, is a professor of social psychology. Her father was very interested in politics and feminism, and he shared these ideas with her. She has two half-brothers.
Pamela Rendi-Wagner is married to Michael Rendi. He used to be an Austrian ambassador to Israel. They have two daughters together.
See also
In Spanish: Pamela Rendi-Wagner para niños
