ESTOOLS - Advances with human embryonic stem cells - Governance

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• Administration

 

Governance

Board of Directors

Our six-member Board of Directors takes responsibility for the strategic direction of ESTOOLS, on behalf of the 20 partners.  Each Director has a specific responsibility, outlined below.

Coordinator

Professor Peter W. Andrews, of the University of Sheffield, is ESTOOLS' Co-ordinator. He chairs meetings of the Board of Directors and the Project Steering Committee, interacts closely with the Project Manager, and is responsible for communication with the Commission on contractual matters.

Deputy Coordinator

Professor Austin Smith, from Cambridge University, is Deputy Co-ordinator, with specific responsibility for technology evaluation and exploitation.

Academic / SME Representative

Professor Oliver Bruestle, director of the University of Bonn's Institute of Reconstructive Neurobiology and Life&Brain GmbH, has been a board member since February 2009. He is also leader of WP7 which is the first dedicated workpackage to be funded by the European Commission to investigate iPS cells.

(From August 2006 until February 2009 Dr Tim Allsopp, from Stem Cell Sciences, represented the ESTOOLS SME group on the board.)

Training Director

Professor Outi Hovatta, from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, oversees ESTOOLS’ training programme. She is also leader of WP1a.

Networking Director

Dr Petr Dvorak, from the Institute of Experimental Medicine in Brno, is responsible for networking activities such as consortium meetings.

Ethics Director

Professor Göran Hermerén, from Lund University, oversees ethical aspects of the projec, and is also leader of WP6.

The Board of Directors will receive reports and recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Panel and the Ethics Advisory Panel. All members of the both the Ethics and Scientific Advisory Panels are independent, with none taking part in the scientific work of ESTOOLS.

Scientific Advisory Panel

ESTOOLS’ Scientific Advisory Panel has been established to review, on an annual basis, our scientific progress.  The panel also provides ongoing assessments of the quality of research activities, highlighting any deficiencies in approach or execution of experimental plans, and suggesting alternative approaches based upon experience outside the Consortium.

Ethics Advisory Panel 

The Ethics Advisory Panel oversees ethical, societal, safety and human as well as animal welfare issues related to the ESTOOLS project. In particular the panel reviews any issues relating to the planned use of different human ES cell lines in different partner laboratories, giving special consideration to local laws and rules.