About
With over 25 years in research, I have acquired and continue to acquire and develop expertise and skills in several areas. I started my journey as a laboratory technician but quickly re-entered higher education. After a Ph.D. obtained in 1996 (University Pierre & Marie Curie. Paris, France) – interrupted by two years teaching biology in a French secondary school in Tangier (Morocco), I went through the usual succession of post-doctoral positions in Scotland and England.
Realising that I was better at planning, managing and organising research than doing it, I started my first position as research coordinator in 2002 at Imperial College London, UK. This was followed by a position as senior programme manager, and finally director of operations at the IAVI Human Immunology Lab in London. My career took a turn when I moved to Switzerland to lead the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise. I like to say that my formative years never ended as I continue to learn everyday.