INTERNATIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER LEADERSHIP SUMMIT

Giancarlo Caratti di Lanzacco has been working at the European Commission (EC) during most of his professional career until September 2021, when he kept a senior advisory role at the EC and joined Crossmedia Europe, a new company promoting dissemination of art and culture via digital and web technologies, which builds on CT Crossmedia’s success worldwide in the production of digital immersive exhibition. His last assignment at the EC was Head for Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Unit, which manages the EC’s intellectual properties and promotes innovation via technology transfer. This Unit was integrated in JRC’s “Competence” Directorate, where both the European Bauhaus and foresight programme were initiated. In 2013 Mr Caratti was appointed as Deputy Commissioner General for the EU participation in the World Expo Milano 2015 and Head of the relevant EU task force. In his previous assignments, Mr Caratti’s educational background is on mechanical engineering with specialisation on energy systems. Before joining the Commission, he worked as researcher and teaching assistant at the Faculties of Engineering of Florence and Pisa and spent one year as visiting scholar at the Georgia Institute of Technology to carry out research on energy modelling. He also worked for two years at Techint, Italy’s largest private engineering company based in Milan. Mr Caratti has over 60 publications in international conferences, journals, etc. and is editor of various technical books.

Shirley Coutinho is the past-president and member of the Board of Directors of FORTEC-Association Forum of Innovation and Technology Transfer Managers, and has been the head of the Technology Transfer Office at the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) from 2003 to 2022. She has obtained her Master Degree in Business Administration from PUC-Rio and before working in the field of IP and TT she has experience in various management positions held at VALE, Brazili’s largest mineral and logistics company.

Almesha L. Campbell, PhD, is the Assistant Vice President for Research and Economic Development at Jackson State University. In this capacity, she supports the Vice President with overall responsibility for the Division of Research and Economic Development, which oversees grants and contracts, sponsored programs, research compliance, tech transfer, federal relations, and the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

For more than 10 years, Almesha served as the Director for Tech Transfer at JSU. She provides strategic direction and vision for defining partnerships in commercialization and innovation initiatives between JSU and other institutions, funding agencies, and industry stakeholders. She is the PI for the NSF-funded JSU I-Corps Site and an NSF EAGER grant designed to help change the perception of underrepresented minorities in innovation and entrepreneurship. She was instrumental in the development of the newly established Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at JSU.

Muhammad Fareid is the Director of Innovation and Commercialisation at National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Pakistan

Mr. Muhammad Anwar Fareid has 20 years of experienced in promoting the creation of innovation ecosystem. He is the director of the Innovation and Commercialization at National University ·& Technology by envisioning NUST as a sustainable institute by fostering mutually beneficial industrial and corporate linkages, facilitating technology transfer, and protecting Intellectual Property (IP) rights.

Dr. Anouk Fortin is the head of the Technology Transfer Office at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, where she has supported research and innovation since 2005. Dr. Fortin obtained her PhD in biochemistry from McGill University and went on to work in several biotechnology companies before joining the OHRI Technology Transfer Office. She holds an RTTP designation and is an active member of the provincial, national and international technology transfer communities.

Ian McClure is the Associate Vice President for Research (AVPR), Innovation and Economic Impact for UK Innovate at the University of Kentucky (UK), where he leads efforts to translate UK discoveries for the public good, seek equitable returns on UK intellectual property (IP), enhance UK’s investments in innovation, catalyze a culture and capacity for entrepreneurship, and expand industry and other collaborative research partnerships.

Ian’s portfolio includes oversight of the UK Office of Technology Commercialization (UK OTC), UK Innovation Connect for industry partnerships, UK Innovation Economic Development and UK’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training. As UK OTC’s previous executive director, he oversaw a team of 25+ staff managing the university’s IP, licensing and startup portfolios. Ian is the past Chair of the Board of Directors for AUTM and a member of Advisory Board of the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation, Launch Blue Accelerator, the Oak Ridge Innovation Institute, and Level Set Capital. In 2022, Ian was appointed by Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) and in 2023, Ian was appointed as an Expert for the National Science Foundation (NSF) Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP) directorate. As an innovator, Ian is a principal investigator or co-investigator on five federal grants focused on tech-based economic development (NIH, NSF, & EDA).

Ian began his career as a Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) and IP transactions attorney at Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP in Louisville. Following private practice, he helped build a startup company in Chicago, IPXI, that was the world’s first financial exchange for IP and technology rights, which he led through growth to 30+ full-time employees and three offices.

Before returning to Kentucky, Ian was Vice President of IP Strategy for Black Stone IP (acquired by Houlihan Lokey), a boutique investment bank headquartered in San Francisco focused on IP-rich M&A and technology-driven transactions. In parallel, he teaches graduate courses on the Law & Business of IP Management at the Chicago-Kent College of Law and the University of Kentucky College of Law. In addition, Ian has been named one of the World’s Leading IP Strategists by IAM Magazine for six years.

Dr. David Gulley is Executive Director and founder of the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) of the Puerto Rico Science, Technology, and Research Trust, a private, non-profit organization established in 2004 to improve Puerto Rico’s innovation ecosystem. The TTO is a regional office serving the island’s public and private universities since 2017.  The TTO manages technology transfer and commercialization for 6 universities, which includes 13 campuses and 4 medical schools.  From 1989-2012 he served the University of Illinois System as Associate Vice President, Technology and Economic Development, and Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research at the Chicago campus.  He has been a member of LES for more than 20 years and served as chair of the Certified Licensing Professionals, Inc.  He has been a member of AUTM for more than 25 years, serving on the AUTM board as VP for Professional Development and as AUTM’s founding member of the Alliance for Technology Transfer Professionals (ATTP), also serving for 10 years on the RTTP Peer Review Committee.  He currently serves on AUTM’s International Strategy Committee as chair, engaging 9 regional subcommittees across the globe.  He led AUTM’s partnership with CORFO from 2010-2014 to deliver professional development programs for Chilean tech transfer staff and to establish and reinforce Chile’s technology transfer offices.

Urša Jerše has been Assistant Secretary General for Knowledge transfer at the University of Ljubljana since April 2018. Prior to that (2009 – 2017), she worked at a public research institute in Slovenia, where she encountered the transfer of knowledge from public research institutions to the business sector and gained extensive experience.  She holds a bachelor’s degree in law and is specialised for procedures of acquiring and protecting employment-related inventions, R&D contract negotiation, and concluding license contracts.

Andy Maas is the Associate Vice President for Research overseeing the office of Innovation and Technology Commercialization at Louisiana State University and he has over 10 years of experience in technology licensing and commercialization.

Andy’s activities have taken him from an engineering start-up (where he built a company from two to 14 employees) to academic roles in both university and research foundation settings. Andy manages an office of 25 full time and 4-5 part-time employees that are responsible for all technology commercialization, small business support, incubation, acceleration, and SBIR/STTR activities of the LSU Flagship campus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 

Andy has been involved in several AUTM Committees and is the incoming Chair of the AUTM Board of Directors.

Anji Miller Is a technology Transfer professional more than 19 year’s experience in the sector. She leads on LifeArc’s support for academic-led gene therapy innovation, with responsibility as the overall LifeArc lead for the Innovation Hubs for Gene Therapies, the LifeArc Gene Therapy Innovation Fund and advancing the hubs’ gene therapy skills agenda. She has management responsibility for specific projects within LifeArc’s Philanthropic Fund. A seasoned tech transfer professional, Anji leads both the AUTM and LifeArc Fellowship programmes and is a Board Director of AUTM, ASTP, CLP and member of the BioIndustry Association Cell & Gene Therapy Advisory Committee. An EDI in STEM advocate, she directs all technology transfer skills activity and translational STEM outreach programmes. She is an active participant in LifeArc’s policy engagement.

Helena Montiel is the President of the Spanish association for knowledge exchange professionals Redtransfer. She is a member of the National Associations Advisory Committee (NAAC) of the Association of European Science and Technology Transfer Professionals (ASTP) and a member of the board of the global Alliance of Technology Transfer Professionals (ATTP). She has been a previous member of the Board of the Catalan Network of Science Parks (XPCAT) and a member of the Board of the Spanish Association of University Technology Transfer Offices (redOTRI).

She has had several Director-level roles at the University of Girona, as Technical Director of the Science and Technology Park and Director of the Research and Technology Transfer Office.

Helena holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering by Polytechnic University of Catalonia. She has been professor and researcher at the University of Girona.

Helena’s professional life has concentrated on the University and Industry Collaboration as a driver of business competitiveness and regional development.

Dr. Orakanoke Phanraksa is a policy specialist in the field of intellectual property laws at Technology Licensing Office, at the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Thailand.  She has been playing a key role to form a policy framework to promote and strengthen technology licensing offices and IP professionals in the academic and research institutions in Thailand. This year, she has served the national committee to develop the national accreditation system for IP professions in Thailand.  At the regional level, Dr. Phanraksa was selected as one of the five regional IP Policy experts by the WIPO to develop the IP Policy Model for Universities and Research institutions in ASEAN.

Liliana Rabal specializes in spearheading technological linkage initiatives that bridge the gap between science and technology institutions, companies, and government entities. She excels in managing technological development and fostering innovation within companies, value chains, and clusters. Liliana takes charge of the design, formulation, and administration of research, development, and innovation (R&D&i) projects, often funded by public resources. Her current role positions her as the President of RedGtec Argentina. She is also Administrative and Legal Responsible figure at FONARSEC, an R&D&I Agency overseeing public-private collaborative projects focused on Electrolyte for Lithium Batteries and Electrolyzers for Green Hydrogen generation. Her expertise lies in Technology and Innovation Management, making her a key contributor to the technological landscape.

Alejandro Roca Campaña is the Senior Director of IP for Innovators Department (IPID), IP and Innovation Ecosystems Sector, World Intellectual Property Organization, Geneva (Switzerland).

He  has 30 years of professional experience in WIPO. He currently holds the position of Senior Director, IP for Innovators Department in the IP and Innovation Ecosystem Sector (IES) since March 2021. The main responsibility of Mr. Roca Campaña consists of advising and coordinating the programs related to capacity building for the development of institutional innovation ecosystems of universities, knowledge transfer organizations (including Technology and Innovation Support Centers – TISCs) and other research and development institutions to effectively use IP assets and to manage them from creation to the commercialization of products and services based on research outcomes. He is also responsible for the implementation of activities and projects to provide resources, tools and platforms to enable active local innovation support and for the coordination of national, regional and international networking to share experiences and best practices as effectively as possible.

Guillermo Roura Pérez graduated as a Pharmaceutical Chemist Biologist (ULSA) and with a Master’s Degree in Chemical Sciences from the Faculty of Chemistry of the UNAM, and a Specialty in Health Law from the Graduate Program of the Faculty of Law also from UNAM. He has worked in the Industrial Property field for the last 14 years, 6 of them in private firms and the last 8 years at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Currently, he is part of the team of the Liaison Secretariat of the Institute of Chemistry of the UNAM and Membership Director of the Board of Directors 2023-2024 of the Technology Transfer Offices Network (RED OTT) in Mexico. He is also part of the working group of the Pacific Alliance Transfer Network (Transferencia AP) which brings together experts from Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Peru, and part of the Advisory and Liaison Council of the Faculty of Chemical Sciences of La Salle University (Mexico).

Olga Spasic is a highly accomplished professional with over 20 years of experience in the area of technology transfer projects and programs of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). She served as the WIPO Head of the Technology Transfer Section, providing crucial assistance and support to WIPO Member States and their innovation stakeholders in the establishment of institutional innovation ecosystems.

In her capacity, Olga Spasic worked on designing and implementing interconnected public and private structural elements such as policies, organizations, funds, and human capital within academic institutions. These innovation ecosystems aimed to foster technology transfer and collaboration between different entities, enabling the effective and efficient exchange of innovative knowledge and technologies.

As a leader, Olga Spasic spearheaded various long-term impact projects and capacity building programs for academic institutions. These programs focused on creating and nurturing technology transfer policies, structures, and human resources to enhance innovation and knowledge dissemination. Her leadership skills and commitment to advancing the field of technology transfer resulted in number of notable projects, some of which include:

Pilot Project on Establishment of Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) in the Arab Region, creation of TTO Network of Baltic States to fosters collaboration, knowledge sharing, and technology transfer within the region, and numerous projects on development of Institutional IP Policies in Universities and Research Institutions in WIPO Member States (e.g., Egypt, Jordan). 

Olga Spasic’s expertise and contributions have had a significant impact on advancing technology transfer and innovation on an international scale. Her work at WIPO was essential in supporting global efforts to create an environment conducive to knowledge sharing, technology exchange, and economic growth through innovation.

Stephen J. Susalka is the Chief Executive Officer of AUTM, a 2,500+ member non-profit association, focused on supporting and enhancing technology transfer globally, and oversees a cooperative agreement with the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer to support federal technology transfer for more than 300 federal labs across the US.  

As an international leader in technology commercialization, Dr. Susalka uses his experience in intellectual property protection, licensing, and company formation to empower, promote and connect AUTM members as they advance the next generation of ground-breaking innovations into the products and services of tomorrow. 

A regular speaker on technology transfer issues, Dr. Susalka has frequently presented on Capitol Hill and internationally on topics ranging from start-up formation to the evolution of the profession. He has worked with senior leaders from around the world on strategies to enhance the commercialization of early-stage inventions and has provided testimony to the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science, and Technology on promoting best practices for intellectual property and technology transfer. 

Before joining AUTM, Dr. Susalka served as Associate Director for Commercialization at Wake Forest Innovations.  

Dr. Susalka earned his Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Virginia and is a registered U.S. Patent Agent.  He is a past Board member of multiple Wake Forest-affiliated start-ups and is both a Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP) and a Certified Licensing Professional (CLP). 

Chalermpol Tuchinda is the CEO of Nastda Holding Company Limited, a wholly-owned investment firm by the National Science and Technology Development Agency under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research, and Innovation (MHESI). He also serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Board of Directors for a few technology companies. He also holds leadership positions in various local and international organizations, including AUTM ASEAN committee chair, ICC Thailand committee member, TRSI Research Utilization subcommittee, Alliance of Innovation Managers steering committee, Technology Entrepreneur Development Fund Subcommittee Chair, and Licensing Executive Society Thailand Advisor and former president. He co-founded and exited three companies. He has experience in business incubation operations, accelerating, innovation-driven businesses, and research technology commercialization. He is practicing the Venture builder model aiming to be a key investment vehicle to accelerate research technology commercialization and to build technopreneurs.

Prof. Fazilet Vardar is a Chemical Engineer with a Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from University College London. 

She has dual experience as an academic and as KE/TT professional. She is currently the vice president of University-Industry Collaboration Centers Platform of Turkey, representing Turkey on ATTP Board and Council, AUTM International Strategy Committee West Asia- MENA Chapter, ASTP-NAAC.  She was the Director of Ege University TTO for 18 years and Coordinator of IRC-EGE and Enterprise Europe Network EBIC-Ege projects between 2004-2017. She the holder of RTTP and EuKTS Grandfather Certificates.

As an academic, she has over 200 publications, three patents and she is the holder of 1989 Turkish Scientific and Technological Council Incentive award in Bioengineering. She was the founding head of the Ege University Bioengineering Department until 2017 and has been involved in over 75 projects throughout the years.

With her long experience in academic research, valorisation of research outputs as well as research management, she is also currently one of the EU Research Management Road Map Ambassadors for Turkey.

Loreen Walker is an Attorney-at-Law in Jamaica.  She holds an LLM in International Intellectual Property Law from the University of London in England.  She established the Jamaica Intellectual Property Office in 2002 and was its head until 2005.  She joined the Legal Office of The University of the West Indies (UWI) in 2008 where she worked in IP and Technology Transfer (among other areas).  She recently retired from The UWI and continues her work in IP and Technology Transfer.

Dr Alwin Wong is the Chair of the Alliance of Technology Transfer Professionals (ATTP), and the sub-committee chair of AUTM international strategy committee for the East Asia region.   He has been an active advocate for the advancement of technology transfer policy framework, academic-industrial engagement, and professional capacity building in the tech transfer communities across the world.  Dr Wong worked full time at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University as a director for technology transfer and entrepreneurship until retirement in 2020, his long-term service as the secretary-general of the International Strategic Technology Alliance (ISTA) helped advanced value of good technology transfer management for university-industry collaboration and technology commercialization for its members.

Alessandra Baccigotti is Knowledge Transfer Manager and Head of the University of Bologna’s Knowledge Transfer Office, where she is responsible for the team dealing with intellectual property protection and valorization for the Bioeconomy and Engineering areas. With over 25 years of experience working for the institution, she held positions as EU Research Advisor and Project Manager of EU funded programmes, among others. Since 2016 Alessandra has been collaborating with several European Commission units as expert evaluator for project proposals. She is also a member of Innovation working group of The Guild of research-intensive universities. She has been member of the ASTP Board for 4 years and is still collaborating with the association as expert for EU policies and matters related to research and innovation. Alessandra holds a Master in Open Innovation and Knowledge Transfer and is RTTP (Registered Technology Transfer Professional).

Loreto Bresky is a lawyer from Chile’s University with a Diploma in Antitrust and Capital Markets and a Compliance Diploma. She has vast experience in intellectual property-related matters, advertising law, unfair competition, free competition and licensing, and litigation before antitrust agencies. She served as head of the Intellectual Property Department of the law firm Albagli Zaliasnik (1998-2008) and at Alessandri Abogados (2008-2018), where she became a partner.

She was designated as the Intellectual Property Ambassador for the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). She was also a member of several international IP organizations, such as the l’Association International pour la Protection de la Propriété Intellectuelle (AIPPI), the International Trademark Association (INTA), and the Interamerican Association of Intellectual Property (ASIPI). She was active in the Chilean Intellectual Property Association (ACHIPI), acting as Director from 2004 until June 2019. Currently, she is also a prominent member of the Advisory Board of Fundación Chile Mujeres and Director of Fundación ProBono Chile.

On June 24, 2019, she assumed as Director General of the National Institute of Industrial Property of Chile (INAPI), the IP Office of Chile, a position in which, due to her excellent performance, has been reconfirmed for a new period of 3 years as from June 25, 2022.

Ignacio Merino, is Executive Director, HUBTEC. Ignacio is an Electrical Engineer with over 20 years of experience in innovation, entrepreneurship, investments, and technological development. He has co-founded and led various startups with operations in Chile, Latin America, Australia, and New Zealand. Responsible for multidisciplinary teams, the development and launch of new products and services, and leadership in the design and implementation of Development, Marketing, and Commercial Strategies for various technologies in mobile telecommunications services, software/IT, energy, and the food/nutrition industry, among others. Extensive experience in investments and venture capital in the technology industry. In 2018, he began working at HUBTEC, a technology and knowledge transfer center, a non-profit corporation that was born as a public policy with public-private collaboration, aiming to generate positive impacts and business opportunities based on the capabilities and technologies of universities and R+D centers in Chile and Latin America. Since 2020, he has served as its Executive Director, with a regional impact focus.

Javier Ramírez is a specialized professional in the field of innovation and technology. With professional training in law, he also possesses an MBA and a master’s degree in intellectual property.

JR has experience in the complete dynamic of institutional leadership on innovation. From intellectual assets management and R&D project financing, to intellectual property strategy protection, technology transfer contracts, deep tech startup early management and investment, etc.

Among other responsibilities, he founded and was the first director of the Innovation office for the University of Chile (the largest Chilean public university) and Andres Bello University (the largest private one). He also collaborated in the installation of UC Davis Life Sciences Innovation Center in Chile, as his Chief Business Development Officer. Mr. Ramírez is currently serving as the Executive Director of Know Hub Chile, where one of his strategic goals is the systematic collaboration between the defense and the science, technology and entrepreneurship ecosystem.

Fernando Venegas is president of the Association of Technology Managers of Chile (RedGT), founder of Grupo Zenit and Business Development Manager of Photio, where he has supported technology transfer and entrepreneurship processes since 2008. Mr. Venegas obtained a bachelor’s degree in law, Master in Intellectual Property and MBA and he has worked in different places in the Chilean innovation ecosystem (Technology Transfer Offices, Technology Transfer HUB, Law firms and startups).