May 2011 | Lodz, Poland – Kate Gunning is invited to present at the BioForum 2011 in Poland and jury the Masters of Innovation competition for Biotechnology

Biotechnology is heating up in Central Europe...!

There are some interesting developments in the life sciences sector in Central Europe and particularly in Poland, and from my recent experiences, it looks like we'll see more activity in the near future on this side of the Atlantic!

I was recently invited to participate in the 10th Annual Bioforum in Lodz, Poland, May 11-12th (http://www.bioforum.pl/2011/) and met with many exciting companies and organizations focused on biotechnology innovation. This conference has grown significantly from its earlier days, with now over 2000 participants convening in Poland for a 2 day event. What I loved about the forum was the cross section of attendees, from students, academics, start-ups, and emerging companies, to representatives of larger players such as Genentech, Merck etc. The forum offered a good mix of exhibitors, one-to-one business partnering meetings, and panel sessions on commercialization, technology transfer, licensing and innovation.

Poland has always had a stellar reputation in basic science, particularly in chemistry, engineering, technology, pharmacology and analytical sciences. Now we're seeing a larger number of R&D companies and early stage biotechs bringing some of this science to commercialization - and hoping to fill the pipeline needs of the larger pharma giants!

So what's next and how can Poland leverage the great science that's going on improving economic development through smart innovation commercialization? That was one of the key questions posed over the course of the 2 day conference - and it's not one that can be answered too quickly. However, now is the time, I believe, to start a new strategic national Polish initiative and get Poland on the map as a serious player in technology development, particularly in the Life Sciences. There are so many lessons that can be learned from looking at how Ireland, Scotland, Germany and the UK have successfully implemented policies for both inward investment and growing their indigenous sectors. Poland has the benefit of studying their best practices, and ensuring not to make some of the same mistakes from their experience. This is a wonderful time to also leverage the Polish Diaspora in the US - taking a leaf from the Israeli and Irish book, (as an example) creating and expanding the global network will surely be a big benefit to the emerging sector.

There are so many opportunities to exploit the great science in Poland, and create value that will ultimately benefit the economy, but this needs to be done in a focused and more strategic way, with funding and support from central government. Let's hope that by Bioforum 2012, in Brno, we'll be learning more about Poland's investment in their smart economy and see some of the successes that brings!