Speakers

Irene is an independent consultant in Food, Health & Prevention with a PhD in Bioinorganic Chemistry.

An innovation accelerator with 30+ years of experience in translating science into commercially viable technologies and economic success. She specializes in bringing direction, clarity and connection by aligning people and knowledge around complex challenges so that teams can turn great ideas into lasting impact. Her ambition is to shape and lead teams and programs at organisations with global societal impact, in collaboration with public and private sector partners.

Prior to her current role, she worked for 25 years at Unilever and subsequently 8 years at Upfield/Flora Food Group, where she held senior R&D leadership roles spanning technology transfer, IP strategy, science-to-market strategies for NPD and international team management. During that time, she built and led cross-functional partnerships between corporate R&D, startups, academia and public research organisations to accelerate product and process development.