Wisia Wedzicha is Professor of Respiratory Medicine at University College London. She is an outstanding respiratory academic, who is internationally known for her research in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She has identified the importance of airway colonisation and infection with both bacteria and viruses in driving innate and adaptive immune responses in the lung and contributing to disease progression through exacerbation of airway inflammation. Wedzicha’s work has substantially changed the clinical management of patients and has had enormous impact on national and international policy in these disease areas. She has made significant contributions to Department of Health policy, to the development of a national service framework for COPD and has contributed with great energy to many national and international working groups.