WHO OWNS SCIENCE? I BAYER FOUNDATION, SCICO

Theo believes that empowering citizens via collaborating, critical thinking and problem solving, whilst cultivating creativity is our modern society’s obligation. A means he uses towards this direction is STEAM education for all

Theo is a science engager, a social entrepreneur and a National Geographic Explorer. He is the Co-Founder and General Manager of SciCo, an international social enterprise aiming to make science simple and to promote science education. Under his leaderships, SciCo has run more than 200 high-impact national and international outreach activities and programs including the “Athens Science Festival, “Mind the Lab”, “Generation Next” and “Celebrity Science” amongst others. Collectively they have reached more than 400.000 people. In addition, he is a visiting Researcher at the Science Communication Unit of the University of Leiden. Theo holds a PhD in Medical Genetics from Kings College London and his Post-Doctoral Research work was in hereditary cancer.

He is an Ashoka Fellow, and he has received the British Council UK Alumni Social Impact Award (2017), the Newcastle University Alumni Impact Award (2019) and the Ecsite Marianno Gago Award (2019). In 2022 he was selected in the Explorer’s Club “50 people changing the world” list. Theo has travelled in 93 countries, in 6 continents.

Emmanuel believes that inclusive learning in higher education is important to reduce barriers to access, reducing awarding and achievement gaps and creating opportunities for all communities to succeed and thrive

Emmanuel is a microbiologist and educator. He is actively leading research on survival mechanisms in bacteria, how to control infections caused by pathogenic bacteria and fungi and how to make learning accessible to all. He is actively developing and implementing strategies to enable inclusive learning in higher education as well as graduate employability. Emmanuel is passionate about promoting science and education to global communities and has shared his work at conferences, meetings and festivals. He co-created the Aspiring Professionals Hub, a platform set up to provide educational and career mentoring for early career professionals.

Emmanuel has a PhD in applied microbiology, a Master’s by Research degree in Biomedical Science and a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Science. He is currently a member of the executive committee and Trustee at the Society for Applied Microbiology as well as a member of the committee for the African Initiative Group for Microbiology (registered in the US). Emmanuel is currently the Deputy Head of School of Applied Science at the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol) in the United Kingdom.

Simge believes in inspiring young minds through STEM education and making science available and accessible to all.

Simge is an Assistant Professor of Organic Chemistry and an entrepreneur scientist. She is the Founder and Director of Science for Kids Cyprus, an initiative with an endeavor of inspiring the younger generation to develop an enthusiasm towards STEM subjects, as well as making science activity available and accessible for all.

She holds a PhD from the University of Bath. Her post-doctoral research was in mechanochemistry, as a visiting researcher at the Università degli Studi di Cagliari. Her recent research extends beyond organic chemistry, spanning over several “science with and for society” themed projects including the implementation of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) principles across education institutions and the alignment of STEM education with sustainable development goals. She is an IVLP Graduate of the Advancing Women in STEM Program from the U.S.

Simge coordinated several ‘Science for Peace’ themed projects in Cyprus including a ‘UNESCO-Science Diplomacy’ project, ‘Science for Kids in the Rural’ and ‘STEAM for Peace and Entrepreneurship’ projects. She has reached over 3000 students in Cyprus, since 2020, via the informal science education programs and workshops organized by Science for Kids.

Simge was selected by the U.S. Embassy for “20 Global Women STEM Leaders” list in 2019. She enjoys and continues teaching chemistry at all levels including postgraduate, undergraduate and secondary education.

Martin believes entrepreneurs need to continuously develop their skills and mindset to start and grow their ventures, building beautiful ventures that fix the future.

 Martin is the managing director of Global School for Entrepreneurship based in Amsterdam. Global School is part of Unknown Group, an early stage impact investor that supports founders to bring their solutions to scale; building beautiful ventures that fix the future.  Martin co-founded the global marketplace for start-ups ‘’Get in the Ring” that connects start-ups in over 100 countries to investors, corporates and governments. For the last 6 years, Martin was also director at the Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship, a leading expertise center applying the knowledge and network of Erasmus University Rotterdam to embed entrepreneurship in the DNA of people.

Martin has been involved in the Dutch entrepreneurial ecosystem for the past 10 years and has participated in several EU collaborative projects to enhance the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Europe. Through Unknown Group, he co-developed a Startup Infrastructure Diagram (SID) to map the entire startup ecosystem of a city, region and country. Martin is board member of the Dutch Centre for Entrepreneurship foundation (DutchCE), a collaboration of the 10 largest university centres for entrepreneurship in the Netherlands.

Martin Luxemburg has a BSc in Entrepreneurship, an MSc in ScalingUp and a Financial Management degree from TIAS School for Business and Society.