Advance to San Diego

Merck Sharp & Dohme and ex-pat Australian business networking organisation Advance have teamed up again to stage the second annual Advancing BioBusiness Award.

The program allows Australian life scientists to meet one-on-one with biotechnology heavyweights in America in June next year to discuss international business opportunities for their companies.

Up to two Australian scientists will be selected to travel to the world's largest biotechnology meeting, the BIO international convention in San Diego, and participate in a tailored program of meetings with leading life sciences organisations.

The chief scientific officer of listed biotechnology company Cytopia, Professor Andrew Wilks, who won last year's award, along with Biota executive director for drug discovery, Dr John Lambert, said that for Australian companies to gain more large-scale agreements we need to think differently about how we persuade sophisticated American investors to make the journey down-under when they have so many opportunities in their own backyard.

"The BIO experience was very different for me this year," Wilks said.

"Through the program of pre-BIO and post-BIO meetings I was able to greatly expand my network of business contacts. Both Advance and Merck opened doors that I didn't think possible and this led to some terrific new insights and business development strategies, for example recognising the potential of China as a relatively un-tapped but fast-growing new market for Australian science."

Applications for the Advancing BioBusiness Award are welcomed from scientists who have completed their post-doctoral training and are conducting research in an institution or biotech company in Australia.

They will be assessed by a panel of experts including Dr Graeme Blackman, chairman and managing director of the Institute of Drug Technology Australia; Dr Anna Lavelle, chief executive officer of AusBiotech; Dr Phil Kearney, external scientific affairs manager for Merck Sharp & Dohme Australia; his predecessor Professor Graham Macdonald, and Dr Peter Riddles, director of ViciBio.

Entry information and application forms can be downloaded from www.msd-australia.com.au or www.advance.org.