Committee
2020-2021 committee
We are dedicated to providing you with a fantastic year of Biotech news, events and opportunities. Please feel free to get in contact with us directly.
Stefan is a third-year Biochemistry student at New College and is this year’s OUBT President. He is going into his masters, for which he’ll be modelling plant metabolism. He has been passionate about biotech since his first year, and he attempted his own start-up (which sadly did not work out). He was on OUBT committee last year, and was amazed by the incredible biotech scene we have here in Oxford, and this year as president he is keen to continue to showcase that. Feel free to email him if you have any questions about the society! Contact: stefan.leape@new.ox.ac.uk
Natasha is a fourth year biochemistry student who is dedicating another year to the OUBT committee. Last year she was our logistics lead and this year she is our communications manager. That means she sends you your biweekly newsletters, updates the calendar and the website. She is passionate about connecting people so get in touch if you’re looking to connect with anyone and she will put you in touch! Contact: natasha.cooke@seh.ox.ac.uk
Bhuvana is a third-year Biochemistry undergraduate at Oriel and OUBT Sponsorship Officer for 2020/21. As a former member of the Oxford iGEM team and OX1 Incubator cohort, she has a keen interest in innovation in the biotechnology industry. Her role involves liaising with the academic, industrial, and entrepreneurial communities to help secure funding for our events including the annual Biohackathon. Feel free to contact her for further information regarding sponsorship opportunities with OUBT. Contact: bhuvana.sudarshan@oriel.ox.ac.uk
Heather is a masters student with the department of Pharmacology and will be starting a DPhil in neuroscience this October. Prior to studying at Oxford, she completed her undergraduate studies in Molecular and Integrative Biology, and a research-based masters in Plant Biotechnology back in Canada. This is her first year sitting on the OUBT committee and she is very excited to help organise some great events for the society this year. Feel free to shoot her an email if you have any questions! Contact: heather.mackay@pharm.ox.ac.uk
Niamh is a second-year medic at Oriel College and a member of the General Committee. It’s her first year as part of the committee and she looks forward to being involved in better understanding how biotechnology can contribute to improving patient care and general lifestyles through helping out with running the society’s events. She specifically takes a fervent interest in biotechnology applied in the context of neurobiology and has been interested in biotech for some time now, both through her course and general reading. If you’re similarly inclined and have any questions or want to know more about the society, feel free to shoot her an email! Contact: niamh.owens@oriel.ox.ac.uk
Thirushan is a second year pre-clinical medical student at St. Peter’s College. This is his first year as a member of the OUBT committee, but he has been interested in the biotech sphere for some time now and has had the opportunity to work in a biotech lab. Past OUBT events have allowed him to explore this interest, and it is a privilege to help put on events to give others the opportunity to do the same. Please feel free to send him an email if you’re interested in OUBT and would like to find out more! Contact: thirushan.wignakumar@spc.ox.ac.uk
Vincent is beginning his DPhil in inflammation biology at the Dunn School of Pathology this year. He is excited to be joining the OUBT committee this year and is looking forward to engaging with this active area in Oxford’s scientific community. His background is in the molecular pharmacology of G-protein coupled receptors following research at the University of Auckland and the Vanderbilt Centre for Neuroscience Drug Discovery. He hopes to continue to keep in touch with biotech and the wonderful translational work going on around all of us. Contact: vincent.luscombe@some.ox.ac.uk