I am part of the business development team of OnePlanet Research Center; a collaboration between Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Radboud University, Radboudumc, and Imec. I am stationed at Corporate Value Creation (CVC) at WUR.

As Business Development Manager Funded Projects, I will explore funding opportunities in the agri-food domain, write funding proposals together with the domain experts, and develop public-private partnerships to bring various innovations to the market.

After an MSc in Biology at Utrecht University, I obtained a PhD in medical entomology at Wageningen University. In the last year of my PhD (2011) I co-founded In2Care, a company with the idea to bridge the gap between the scientific world and industry. In2Care’s goal was to create scientifically-sound products against disease-transmitting insects to improve the well-being of people. Since its existence In2Care already developed two products that are creating an impact; protecting people from disease-transmitting mosquitoes.

At In2Care I was responsible for product registration, fundraising and financial management including management of several multi-million euro funded projects.  As part of a small start-up that quickly grew into a scale-up with the same small team, I gained experience in Intellectual Property protection, legal affairs, collaborating with knowledge institutions, SME’s as well as with large multi-national industrial partners and governmental organizations.

In early 2020 I decided it was time for a new challenge which led me to the current position at OnePlanet Research center. I will stay connected to In2Care but only as shareholder and external Board member on whom they can rely for questions and advice.

The goal of OnePlanet, to convert scientific knowledge into innovative products using the latest chip and digital technologies to create a sustainable future in food, agriculture, and health, brings my passion for technology together with my drive to help people.

My academic background together with the experience with In2Care, bringing products to the market and collaboration with small and large organizations, will enable me to bring these parties together. It is in making the connection between parties, sectors, subjects, and ideas that I find the most joy in my work.