Europe & USA Participants
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Dr. Andrea Guzmán MesaDr. Andrea Guzmán Mesa is the International Relations Officer at ELIXIR, the European research infrastructure for life science data. She supports ELIXIR’s engagement with international partners and current and prospective Member States. Previously, Andrea was the National Contact Point for Horizon Europe Partnerships at Euresearch in Switzerland advising stakeholders on European R&I collaborations. She holds a PhD in Astrophysics from the University of Bern in Switzerland but transitioned to science policy driven by a strong interest in research governance and international collaboration. Elixir: https://elixir-europe.org/ |
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Andrew SmithAndrew Smith is Head of ELIXIR’s External Relations team. Andy manages a team of experts responsible for ELIXIR’s collaborations with international partners and other ESFRI research infrastructures, industry engagement, socio-economic impact and website and communication activities. Andy leads on ELIXIR’s engagement with existing and potential Member States and EU institutions.
Andy has served as domain expert on various G7, OECD and ESFRI Working Groups. Andy joined ELIXIR in 2011 to help establish the infrastructure. Since then, he has held a range of roles including Interim Director of ELIXIR from December 2023 to May 2024. Prior to joining ELIXIR, Andy worked in Brussels for the UK Research Office and has also held roles in regional government and education in the UK, Slovenia and Czech Republic. |
Anne-Charlotte Fauvel |
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Antje KepplerAntje Keppler is Director of the Bio-Hub of Euro-BioImaging ERIC, hosted by the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany. She leads an international team to coordinate and operate the pan-European research infrastructure services for biological imaging in Euro-BioImaging. She currently is Chair of ERIC Forum, where 31 ERICs (European Research Infrastructure Consortia) come together to represent their voice and interests towards European key stakeholders. Antje also is coordinator of the international Global BioImaging network, which promotes open science and open access to imaging research infrastructure services in by now 64 countries across all continents. Antje studied biochemistry at the Ruhr-University in Bochum, before she moved to Lausanne for conducting her PhD in chemical biology at the EPFL. |
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Anton UssiAnton Ussi (MSc) is Operations & Finance Director at EATRIS ERIC, the ESFRI European infrastructure for translational medicine. Joining EATRIS in 2010, he was part of the team responsible for the design and statutory incorporation of the infrastructure, whose membership counts 15 European Member States. In his current role as CEO since 2015, Ussi has a background in technology transfer, with previous history in mechanical engineering and automotive design, and small business administration. He specialises in public-private and public-public collaboration and translational research in medicine. Ussi is also Principal Investigator of REMEDi4ALL, a large EU-funded initiative to develop a European medicines repurposing eco-system. |
Florian Jug |
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Jana Pavlic-ZupancJana Pavlic-Zupanc is the Head of Public Affairs at BBMRI-ERIC (Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure – European Research Infrastructure Consortium) since September 2021, where she leads relations with Member States, the EU, other Research Infrastructures and key stakeholders, such as patient organizations. Since 2011 to 2020 Ms Pavlic-Zupanc worked in international relations for the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), since 2017 as the Head of Government and EU Relations. Previously Ms Pavlic-Zupanc worked in different roles for the European Commission, including in the European External Action Service, and for the Slovenian government, where she was a senior member of the EU Affairs State Secretary’s Cabinet. Ms Pavlic-Zupanc obtained her master’s degree in European Affairs at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium, in 2005, and completed her university studies in the area of International Relations – Political Science at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, in 2004. |
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Professor Jens K. Habermann
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John Eriksson |
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José A. MárquezJosé A. Márquez, PhD is Senior Scientist and Head of the High Throughput Crystallization Laboratory (the HTX lab) at the EMBL, Grenoble. Specialized in structural biology, his scientific interest is in the studyof molecular mechanisms in sensing and signalling. His team has a strong focus on technology development and operates one of the largest academic facilities offering advanced crystallography services to hundreds of scientists in Europe and the world. He has participated in numerous E.C.-funded research and infrastructure projects. His team has developed the innovative CrystalDirect technology and the CRIMS software, enabling full automation of the crystallography process with applications in fundamental research and structure-based drug design. He is co-founder and CSO of two companies, ALPX, an EMBL start-up providing advanced structure biology services to the pharma and biotech sector and Cerelixis, applying EMBL’s proprietary technology to develop precision solutions for sustainable agriculture. |
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Dr Kelly Vere
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Lauren Maxwell |
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Linda Chaabane |
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Lucia Banci |
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Luis Martí-BonmatíLuis Martí-Bonmatí is the Director of the Medical Imaging Department and Chairman of Radiology at La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital and of the Biomedical Imaging Research Group and the Experimental Radiology and Imaging Biomarkers Platform (PREBI) at La Fe Health Research Institute in Valencia, Spain. He is also Professor of Radiology at the University of Valencia, where he has supervised numerous doctoral theses and final projects. In 2012, Prof. Martí-Bonmatí cofounded QUIBIM SL, a company focused on developing imaging biomarkers for clinical and experimental use, which successfully launched in the market in 2021. His research focuses on computational imaging, radiomics, imaging biobanks, and clinical innovations in medical imaging and artificial intelligence. With over 600 publications, he coordinates several major European projects, including PRIMAGE and CHAIMELEON under Horizon Europe, which deal with medical imaging, artificial intelligence, and predictive models. Currently, he serves as the Scientific Director of the European Cancer Images (EUCAIM) Digital Europe project, which aims to develop a pan-European digital infrastructure for cancer imaging. He is the Scientific Coordinator of the EUCAIM project. This initiative aims to deploy a pan-European digital federated infrastructure of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) pan-cancer anonymised images from real-world data. He is Full Academic Member of the Spanish Royal National Academy of Medicine, and Vice-President of the Federation of European Academies of Medicine (FEAM). He has been (2018-2024) the Editor-in-Chief of Insights into Imaging, a Q1 journal of the European Society of Radiology (ESR), dedicated to critical thinking and the added clinical value of medical imaging. |
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Marialuisa LavitranoMarialuisa Lavitrano is full professor of Pathology, director of Molecular Medicine Unit and of the Executive Masters’ in Management of Research Infrastructures at Milano-Bicocca University where she was Pro-Rector for International Affairs [2006-2013]. Over the years, she contributed to the international strategies of the Ministries of Research and of Health and coordinated the Italian participation in the BioMedical Sciences ESFRI roadmap. In 2013 she was appointed BBMRI.it (Biobanking and BioMolecular resources Research Infrastructure – Italy) Node-Director. In December 2020 she was first elected – confirmed in 2024 – in the board of eight directors of the EOSC Association and serves as vice-president. Prof. Lavitrano has a long-term experience in research, management, training and in bioethical aspects of science, with leading roles in 14 European funded projects within H2020 and Horizon programs, 11 of which related to research infrastructures. |
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Michael Raess
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Plamena Markova |
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Prof. Robert L. Grossman
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Tanja Ninkovic |
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Zhanna Ivanova |
Australian Participants
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Andrew GilbertAndrew is the Chief Executive of Bioplatforms Australia (www.bioplatforms.com), overseer of $500 million Commonwealth Government National Collaborative Research Infrastructure investment in the discovery sciences of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics. With 20 investments across Australia, Andrew has an extensive network of contacts from Commonwealth and State Governments, along with prominent universities, medical research institutes, agricultural research institutes and commercial entities. The network supports 350 full time research infrastructure practitioners, who in turn enable 3000 users per annum across the spectrum of pure research to commercial production.In addition to managing the national infrastructure network, Bioplatforms Australia has catalysed the formation of a series of strategic national scientific collaborations – in the broad themes of agriculture, biodiversity and biomedical science. Each Bioplatforms initiative is by design multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional and contain both discovery implications and pathways to end use. Innovation is inherent in both the model of collaboration and the environment created to foster excellent science and application to national challenges. |
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Prof Angel Lopez
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Annette WittmannAnnette has held several senior leadership roles in the Australian higher education and research sector, contributing to the establishment and implementation of large-scale education and research programs. Annette is Chief Operating Officer at EMBL Australia and based at Monash University in Melbourne. She is interested in strengthening existing ties between Australia and Europe, ECR talent attraction, research infrastructure workforce development and promoting the exchange of international best practice. Annette holds a Master of Marketing from the University of Auckland. She is also a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. |
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Crystal Cooper
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Prof Ian SmithIan has a background in both industry and research and up until 2020, was Vice- Provost at Monash University. In this leadership role, he had responsibility for research strategy, infrastructure and alliances. Ian is now Professor Emeritus and consults for academic, government and industry organisations. He is a board director and chair of several Australian and international senior government and non-government governing and advisory boards. EMBL Australia: https://www.emblaustralia.org/ |
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Ian SmythProfessor Ian Smyth is the Associate Dean, Research and Research Infrastructure in the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University. The role supports the development of the Faculty’s extensive network of Research Platforms. He was awarded his PhD from the University of Queensland and undertook postdoctoral training as a Wellcome Trust Traveling Research Fellow at the MRC Human Genetics Unit (Edinburgh) and Baylor College of Medicine (Houston) and as an LRI Fellow at Cancer Research UK in London. He returned to Australia as an NHMRC RD Wright Fellow and has subsequently held ARC Future and NHMRC Senior Research Fellowships. His research team at the Monash focuses on understanding kidney disease and how genetic and environmental factors influence the development of the organ. He has previously served as node lead for Phenomics Australia and he is the founder of the kidney disease therapeutics company xCystence Bio. |
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James Whisstock |
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Jeff Christiansen
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Jim Hennessy
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John Hooper |
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Prof Jose M PoloProfessor Jose M. Polo FAA is Scientific Head of EMBL Australia. He is inaugural Director of the Adelaide Centre for Epigenetics (ACE), Program Leader at SAiGENCI, University of Adelaide, and Group Leader at Monash University. A leading expert in cellular reprogramming, epigenetics, and stem cell biology, his work includes developing organoid models from iPSCs and in vitro models of placenta and early human embryos. Since earning his PhD in 2008, he has advanced research in development, cancer, ageing, and neurodegenerative diseases. His contributions have earned multiple accolades, including the Metcalf Award, NHMRC Fiona Stanley Research Excellence Award, and the President’s Medal from ANZSCDB. In 2024, he was elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science. He co-founded Cell Mogrify Pty Ltd in 2016 to translate reprogramming into therapies, with the company receiving several innovation awards. SAiGENCI: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/saigenci/ |
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Dr Kelly Scarlett
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Dr. Lisa YenLisa Yen is the CEO of Microscopy Australia, established in 2007 to enable access to advanced microscopes and experts through the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS). She has nearly 20 years of experience in collaborative research activities, focussed on enabling research and innovation, both nationally and internationally. She has been Co-Chair of Global BioImaging, an international network of cutting-edge bioimaging facilities to share best practice and support career pathways for imaging scientists around the world. |
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Dr. Liz JazwinskaDr Liz Jazwinska PhD MBA GAICD is an experienced leader in medical research strategy, innovation, and governance, with over 30 years’ experience across government, academia, and industry in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, and Singapore. She brings deep expertise in research translation, commercialisation, public-private partnerships, and national infrastructure development. Liz currently chairs the Governance Boards of Phenomics Australia and the FOXG1 Research Foundation Australia and serves as the NSW Health Government Representative on the Board of the Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR), where she also chairs the IP & Commercialisation Subcommittee. She has held previous board and advisory roles with both profit and not-for-profit organisations including Johnson & Johnson Australia and ESR (NZ). Her prior executive roles include Director of Business Development at Monash University, Director of Research Engagement and Acting Director of Research Translation at RMIT, and Director of Industry Development at A*STAR Singapore. She was Deputy Chief Executive of New Zealand’s Ministry of Science & Innovation and Executive Director for Biological Sciences at the Australian Research Council, overseeing large-scale national investment strategies. Liz holds a PhD (Science), an MBA, and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. |
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Liz SonenbergLiz Sonenberg is a Professor of Information Systems at the University of Melbourne with research interests in artificial intelligence. In 2020 she received the Distinguished Research Contribution in the Australasian AI Awards. She is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors with Board experience through directorships of several small companies associated with the University. In her role as Pro Vice Chancellor (Systems Innovation), she contributes to University-wide technology planning and investment. Previous responsibilities included facilitation of interdisciplinary research across the University and oversight of University research infrastructure policies. She has also been on the advisory and management boards of several major State and Commonwealth government funded research infrastructure initiatives. Liz is Chair of the National Research Infrastructure Advisory Group that advises the Commonwealth Department of Education, and Chair of the Expert Working Group developing the 2026 National Research Infrastructure Roadmap. |
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Prof. Michael Dobbie
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Professor Peter Gray AO
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professor Rebecca Glauert
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Sach JayasingheSach Jayasinghe is the CEO of QCIF Ltd. QCIF provides data and digital research infrastructure capabilities across Australia. He is also the lead on several national research infrastructure projects encompassing more than $5M of investment. In his capacity as Adjunct Professor (Research Infrastructure) for the University of Queensland, he works with partners to uplift the State’s research infrastructure and leverage technology capabilities in establishing new industries such as synthetic biology, clean energy and quantum technologies. Previously, Sach was the Director, Research Infrastructure, providing strategic input and overseeing the operations of QUT’s research infrastructure portfolio. Preceding QUT, Sach had several roles at the University of Melbourne. As Director of Research Strategy, on behalf of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), he oversaw the University’s strategic investments in research and innovation and leaves a legacy as the principal architect of the Melbourne Collaborative Research Infrastructure Program. Sach is a Fellow of the Queensland Academy of Arts and Science and the Association for Tertiary Education Management. He is also a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. |
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Sarah FlaimDr. Sarah Flaim is Chief Operating Officer at the National Imaging Facility, bringing over 15 years of experience in research, operations, clinical trials, and stakeholder engagement across the higher education sector. She is passionate about values-based leadership, mentoring, and fostering high-performing teams and positive workplace culture. Sarah has a particular passion for enabling large-scale collaborations and delivering pragmatic solutions to operational challenges. Prior to joining NIF, she held specialist research management roles spanning the full research lifecycle. She was previously a Junior Research Fellow at Balliol College, University of Oxford, conducting interdisciplinary research in computational biology, and holds a PhD in Bioengineering from UC San Diego as a Fulbright Scholar. |
Sarah Nisbet |
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Steven Manos |
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Stuart NewmanSince completing a PhD in Antarctic Biology from the University of Tasmania in 2001, Stuart has built up considerable experience of science policy, pharmaceutical R&D, grant funding, IP management, business development and commercialisation in the university and not-for-profit sectors. He joined TIA as CEO in 2017, and under his leadership the organisation has focussed investment on the gap between research and development of high-value therapeutics, including pharmaceuticals, biologics, vaccines and cell & gene therapies. He also devised an innovative infrastructure access voucher scheme. Stuart is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. |
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Prof Wojtek GoscinskiProf Wojtek Goscinski is the Chief Executive Officer of the National Imaging Facility (NIF), Australia’s national network for advanced biomedical imaging. Funded through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy, NIF brings together 14 universities, medical research institutes, and public science agencies. Wojtek is also an Adjunct Professor of Practice in the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University. Prior to leading NIF, he was the founding Coordinator and Platform Director of MASSIVE, a high-performance data processing and analytics facility at Monash University with national impact and international recognition. |