My motivation

I have been a scientist in academia for 19 years and a trainer for science since 2010.

I believe that the culture of science needs to change: creativity and inspiration need to find their way back into our every-day lives, our means of communication, our conferences and interactions. We need to shift our focus to human needs and values, and to the social context in which we do science.

In addition, I want to raise the “fairness awareness” in the scientific world, providing fair opportunities and access to research for all genders and all cultural and societal backgrounds.

This change of culture cannot be pre-ordained from above. It needs to be achieved bottom-up, starting by creating awareness. All of this change is highly necessary. And feasible.

My goal is: to embed science in it’s subjective environment which it cannot escape from.

My professional background

After my biology Masters at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium), I did a PhD in Cell & Developmental Biology at the University of Basel. I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at Stony Brook University (NY), as a computer officer at the University of Cambridge, and as a lab manager at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona. Throughout my scientific career, I gained long-standing experience as a trainer and mentor in the fields of interpersonal communication and leadership skills exclusively for scientists. Since Fall 2016 I combine my work as a freelance trainer with supporting the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria) in the areas of Diversity & Inclusion, and as a person-of-trust.

I love hiking in the mountains and spending time outdoors. I am keen on training my voice to be able to sing whatever I’d like to. I live with my family and two cats right outside Vienna, Austria, which is country number 7 for me.

You can also find me on LinkedIn: LinkedIn/Hilde

Publications & Citations

• Plant Fellows News, Career Alert of the Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center (2016)
  • Diversity in science can only be reached through a diversity of approaches
• Science Careers: Career Magazine
  • Leadership Tips for Women (2013)
  • Lab Management Courses: Becoming a Trainer (2014)
• EMBO encounters
  • How to become an accomplished lab leader: Third EMBO Laboratory Management Course for Female Leaders in Science (2015)
  • Making scientists better managers (2013)

• A list of scientific publications can be found here

Film Projects