Fireside at FemSTEM: Yasaman Soudagar
Fireside at FemSTEM:
In Conversation with Dr. Yasaman Soudagar
Join H2i on March 5th, as a part of University of Toronto Entrepreneurship Week, as we sit down with special guest, Dr. Yasaman Soudagar!
What is Fireside at FemSTEM?
Fireside at FemSTEM is an interactive conversation series held each winter as part of H2i’s broader FemSTEM programming.
During each Fireside, we sit down and chat with one incredible speaker. Speakers are distinguished women within the health entrepreneurship space and are joined by members of the H2i and UTE community as moderators. This Fireside will be moderated by H2i Mentor Allison Brown.
For this Fireside, H2i is thrilled to welcome Hon. Charmaine Williams, MPP and Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, who will provide opening remarks, meet our FemSTEM finalists and attend the duration of the talk.
Meet our Speaker:
Dr. Yasaman Soudagar completed her PhD in the field of experimental quantum optics at École Polytechnique of Montreal and the University of Toronto, under supervision of Dr. Aephrain Steinberg. She then worked at Attodyne (now Light Matter Interaction after a successful exit) as an industrial postdoc, designing the optical delivery of a surgical laser. In 2014 she had the idea for multi-region brain imaging for understanding the brain. She did a few months postdoc at a neuroscience lab and started her company Neurescence. Neurescence went through a high profile acquisition by Bruker last November. The team continues their effort to help brain research in Toronto, Canada.
Meet our Guest Speaker | Welcoming Remarks
Charmaine Williams was elected as MPP for Brampton Centre and appointed as Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic
Opportunity in June 2022, becoming the first-ever Black PC cabinet minister.
As Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, Charmaine has been particularly focused
on increasing women’s participation in the workforce to support their economic security and independence, especially in sectors where they are underrepresented like entrepreneurship, skilled trades, and STEM.
As Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, Charmaine has been particularly focused on increasing women’s participation in the workforce to support their economic security and independence, especially in sectors where they are underrepresented like entrepreneurship, skilled trades, and STEM.
Prior to provincial politics, Charmaine was engaged in municipal politics. In 2018, she ran in her first election and won, serving one term as Brampton City Councillor for Wards 7 & 8.
Charmaine’s beliefs, values, and courage to advocate for others are shaped by her professional and personal experiences. Before entering politics, she had a 19-year career as a certified multisystemic therapist, behavioural consultant, and counsellor, working with organizations such as the Associated Youth Services of Peel, Peel Children’s Centre, and Reach Out Centre for Kids in Halton Region.
Meet our Moderator
Allison Brown has 20 years of experience working at the intersection of advanced research, technology commercialization and business development, largely in the regenerative medicine / cell and gene therapy sector.
She is currently the Executive Director of Medicine by Design, a $100M regenerative medicine initiative that convenes and curates world-leading expertise at the University of Toronto (U of T) and its affiliated hospitals.
Prior to joining Medicine by Design, Allison served as Director, Partnerships at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering at U of T, where she forged partnerships some of the world’s leading technology companies to tackle bold research challenges.
Allison was part of the start-up leadership team at the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (now, CCRM) and has also held roles in management consulting and in the pharmaceutical industry.
Allison began her career at a U of T spin-off company. She holds PhD and BASc degrees in Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry from U of T.
Next Up for FemSTEM 2024:
2024 FemSTEM Pitch Competition | March 26, 2024 | 3 – 5 PM (in-person)