James Dening
James Murray
Tom Verlinden
Tom Verlinden obtained a Master in Pharmaceutical Science (University of Antwerp) and a master in Industrial Pharmacy (IPIL, France). Tom substantiated his knowledge at the EM Lyon business school and proceeded to work in a mid-sized pharmaceutical company (Production Manager at Gifrer et SEV, France). Tom has experience with leading/managerial positions, since he has many years of experience in management positions (Vice-président and COO) at Qualiphar (Belgium) and (Vice-président and Responsible Pharmacist) at Gifrer SAS (France).
Nichola Eliovits
Nick's investment expertise spans across asset classes with an extensive focus on microbiome oriented companies across all stages of venture capital.
Nick is a Managing Partner at Olive Tree Capital; he led his last company through acquisition and has successfully seeded and structured companies across multiple industries.
His passion for the Microbiome originates from personal experiences with fungal skin infections and c-diff.
Nick graduated with honors from Boston University’s Questrom School of Business and started his career in commodity markets at CPM Group in New York.
Alexander Gordon James
Gordon originates from Glasgow in Scotland, and was educated at University of Glasgow, graduating with a BSc and PhD in Biochemistry in 1987 and 1991, respectively. He then did a postdoctoral fellowship at University of Strathclyde in the area of environmental biotechnology, during which time he began practicing his favoured discipline of microbial biochemistry. Gordon joined Unilever R&D in 1993, and in the time since, his main focus has been using his microbial biochemistry skills to unravel the origins of axillary (underarm) odour. His current role is to provide scientific leadership to a UK-based team specialising in this topic on behalf of Unilever’s Deodorants category and the global Science & Technology Platform, Human Microbiome
Valerie Casagrande
Valerie Casagrande is the founder of BIOMILK Probiotic Skincare, the first natural beauty brand supporting the health of your skin through complete healthy nutrition. Valerie graduated from ESCEM School of Business and Management in France. Moving soon after to the US and prior to launching BIOMILK, she spent 12 years leading the growth of well-known international brands in the beauty, personal care and health space at Johnson & Johnson and Church & Dwight. In its first year in market, BIOMILK was awarded most innovative natural brand at Cosmoprof NA 2018, and is now growing in the US and Internationally.
Darcy Bomford
Darcy Bomford is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of True Leaf, a leading global cannabis and hemp wellness brand for pets, headquartered in British Columbia, Canada.
Darcy is a pet industry veteran who started out as a veterinary assistant and then turned young entrepreneur when he recognized a gap in the market for higher-quality natural pet products. At the age of 16, he started marketing his own supplements for dogs out of his van, which evolved into a small bakery and eventually became a public company with three federally-inspected plants and 50 employees.
In 2012, and with almost three decades of experience in manufacturing, branding, distribution, and sales, Darcy founded True Leaf – a company that pioneered hemp-based pet supplements that are legally compliant in all markets.
True Hemp™ is the first hemp-based pet product line to be marketed globally. The company’s dog and cat chews, dental sticks, and oil supplements are now sold in more than 3,500 stores across North America and Europe, as well as on Amazon. The success of the product is rooted in an innovative formula of active ingredients – and anchored by hemp – to target specific pet health challenges such as calming support, hip and joint function, and the supplementation of healthy omega-3s.
Inspired by the unconditional love our pets give us every day, Darcy and True Leaf return that love through products which help maintain and protect the natural vitality of our pet companions. “Return the Love” is the purpose that drives True Leaf’s business and is at the heart of the company’s values to bring happiness to pets and their owners.
True Leaf continues to build momentum around the world as pet owners recognize the health benefits of hemp and cannabis – not only for them – but for their pet companions too.
Tami Lieberman
Tami Lieberman joined the MIT faculty in January 2018. She leads a computational and experimental research group focused on uncovering the principles governing colonization, niche range, and personalization in the human microbiome.
Tami trained in molecular biology and mathematics at Northwestern University, where she conducted research in the laboratory of Jon Widom and was funded by a Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. She then earned a PhD in Systems Biology from Harvard University, where she conducted research in Roy Kishony’s laboratory. During her graduate research, Tami developed new genomic approaches for understanding how bacteria evolve during infections of individual people. As a postdoc in Eric Alm’s lab at MIT, she further developed and applied these genomic approaches to understand the microbes that colonize us during health. Tami has also made contributions to our understanding of antibiotic resistance, including the co-invention of a new platform for visualizing evolution in real time. Her work has been covered in the popular press, including online coverage from The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, The Boston Globe, and ArsTechnia.