Gerd Auffarth is one of the world’s leading intraocular lens experts. He is Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Ruprecht-Karls University of Heidelberg, and Head of the David J. Apple Center for Vision Research. He also serves as the Director of the IVCRC. As a leading industry professional, Gerd was permitted to visit North Korea in 2006. During his stay, he performed 17 surgeries and later reported on his visit in a video released in 2011 entitled “Ophthalmology Behind the Iron Curtain: Cataract Surgery in North Korea”. In 2018, Gerd ranked second in the The Ophthalmologist’s Power List of the World's Top 100 most influential people in the world of ophthalmology.