The School of Life Sciences holds "4à6 de BioAlps" conference
© Phillipe Borel
EPFL’s School of Life Sciences held this year’s “4à6 de BioAlps”, marking the first time the popular event is held in an academic institution.
BioAlps is a worldwide Life Science network, including both academic and commercial research institutions. The "4à6 de BioAlps” are a series of events specifically organized in each one of the seven cantons of western Switzerland (Bern, Geneva, Fribourg, Jura, Neuchatel, Valais, and Vaud). The participants include major players in the fields of biotechnology and medical technology.
This month’s 4à6 de BioAlps took place at EPFL’s School of Life Sciences (SV) on May 2, organized by BioAlps and La Promotion économique du Canton de Vaud.
The event aimed to increase the visibility of SV across the BioAlps community, with the intention to foster networking and collaboration between SV’s labs and platforms with researchers in other academic and commercial organizations.
The event began with introductory talks by the President of EPFL Professor Patrick Aebischer and the Dean of SV Professor Gisou van der Goot. Professor Aebischer highlighted the contributions of SV to the life sciences and biotechnology on the national and international level, and emphasized the numerous startups forming out of its research and lab. He characteristically described the faculty as a “convergence of informatics, nanotechnology, biosciences and cognitive science”. Professor van der Goot outlined the academic structure of SV, with an emphasis on its teaching programs and scholarships.
Credit: Phillipe Borel
Credit: Phillipe Borel
Guided by Master and Bachelor students, the visitors then took tours of SV laboratories and technology platforms. Each participant was able to visit one of three research institutes (IBI, BMI or ISREC) and three technology platforms (PCF, PCRYCF or BSF) of their choice, depending on their professional and scientific interests. The event closed with a reception, where visitors, students and staff were invited to connect and network.
This is the first time ever the 4à6 de BioAlps takes place in an academic institution. It was attended by ~70 delegates from a range of organizations, including Nestlé Health Science, the Wyss Center for Bio and Neuroengineering, the University of Geneva, UCB, ALPIQ, BionActis, and others.