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The ValleyDAO
Community

The ValleyDAO community is made up of Growers. They collectively help both the organization and one another grow. The DAO is managed by a core team called the Original Growers or ‘OGs’.

Get involved by becoming a contributor. Learn more by reading our contributor handbook here and apply directly below.

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Governance

The Governance Growth Group drives the establishment, management, and evaluation of DAO-wide governance initiatives. Core activities include policy formation, decision-making strategies, stakeholder collaboration, and token-driven voting mechanisms

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Communications

The Communications Growth Group focuses on community engagement, education, social media, content creation and event hosting. This group is one of the most active ones in the organization and is always looking for writers and community gurus.

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Dealflow & Incubation

Dealflow & Incubation identifies and evaluates research projects that ValleyDAO can fund and incubate into IP and eventual commercialization. The group hosts academics, industry stakeholders, and entrepreneurs all working together to support researchers.

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Community

Albert Anis
Albert Anis
OG
Research
Albert is the founder of ValleyDAO and has previously led synbio research projects and created global and local innovation ecosystems for bioentrepreneurs. At ValleyDAO, he's responsible for research direction and strategy.
Morgan Richards
Morgan Richards
OG
Product
Tokenomics
Morgan is the co-founder of ValleyDAO. Operating at the interface between AI, synthetic biology and climate tech, Morgan is passionate about bridging the gaps in academia and industry to accelerate our transition to a sustainable future.
Daniel Hussey
Daniel Hussey
OG
Research
Dan is an experienced IP licensing professional with a background in biotech and engineering. He leads the Dealflow & Incubation Growth Group, managing, sourcing projects and structuring partnerships.
John Cumbers
John Cumbers
Advisor
Comms
John is the founder of SynBioBeta, a leading community using synthetic biology to build a better, more sustainable world. He is also a senior contributor at Forbes.com.
Dan Goodwin
Dan Goodwin
Advisor
Research
Trained in computer science and neuroscience, he co-founded MileIQ, later acquired by Microsoft. At MIT, his PhD focused on algorithms for neuroscience experiments. Now focused on bioengineering for climate-positive technologies for human and planetary health.
Rebecca Vaught
Rebecca Vaught
Advisor
Research
Rebecca is the founder and CEO of Van Heron Labs and a multidisciplinary scientist, inventor, advisor, and web3 enthusiast with 10+ years of research and industry experience.
Darren Nesbeth
Darren Nesbeth
Advisor
Research
Darren is a professor at UCL Biochemical Engineering Department, CSO at a cultivated seafood company, Caviar Biotec, and Alternative Protein lead at Clean Food Group.
Alex Horghidan
Alex Horghidan
Governance
Research
Alex has a background in consulting, economic development and digital health. He keeps ValleyDAO’s operations running seamlessly.
Andrew Newman
Andrew Newman
Research
Neuroscientist by day, synthetic biologist by night, Andrew is passionate about finding synbio unicorns that benefit the planet. He specializes in mammalian systems and comp. biology and is currently a Group Leader at the Charité Medical Univerisity Berlin.
Nina Kurowska
Nina Kurowska
Research
Nina is the leader of the first iGEM team at the Jagiellonian University in Kakow. In addition to building genetic circuits, she's passionate about entrepreneurship and participates in iGEM's Venture Creation Labs program with her own synbio startup idea.
Oliver Konzock
Oliver Konzock
Research
Oliver is working on ValleyDAO’s funded project at Imperial College London. An expert in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology, Oliver has advanced the use of Yarrowia lipolytica for sustainable bio applications at Chalmers and JBEI.
Simran Aulakh
Simran Aulakh
Research
Simran is a microbial biochemist passionate about solutions for creating a more sustainable biosphere on Earth. She holds a PhD in Systems Biology from the Francis Crick institute and supports ValleyDAO with their research funding and incubation strategy.
Themis Atsaloglou
Themis Atsaloglou
Product
Purpose driven product designer who loves ValleyDAO's mission so much that he's part of many growth groups including product and tokenomics. He's usually first to greet you when you join the community.
Abhijeet Patra
Abhijeet Patra
Research
A seasoned investor and experienced program director, Abhijeet is an instrumental figure in accelerating the commercialisation of synbio technologies at ValleyDAO. His previous roles span co-founding the Susa Fellows Fund to partnering at Ginkgo’s Ferment.
Rolando Perez
Rolando Perez
Research
Rolando is a scientist and entrepreneur. He applies his training in synthetic biology to enable a more sustainable world in behalf of all people and the planet, with a focus on the intersection of technology, biodiversity and an equitable bioeconomy.
David Kim
David Kim
Research
David is the founder at CyanoCapture - a biotech company using synthetic biology for carbon removal. He is also a former researcher in Immunology and a medical doctor having completed his MD at the University of Oxford. sadasdas
Camila G. Quinonez
Camila G. Quinonez
Research
Camila is a scientist at Epoch Biodesign and a dealflow contributor at ValleyDAO. She is experienced in synthetic biology with a focus on combating Tuberculosis and plastic degradation. She's also passionate about preserving the Atlantic Forest.
Kyriakos Attouni
Kyriakos Attouni
Research
Kyriakos began his career at Norachem, a computational drug design platform. He’s now working as a business developer, building the TechBio stack to accelerate the design/build/test cycle in Biotech.
Alfred Brown
Alfred Brown
Comms
Alfred is Co-founder of DeSci London and an incoming PhD candidate at Imperial College London, his research will focus on the intersection of SynBio and AI. He is passionate about moving the bioeconomy forward by enhancing communication and collaboration.
Alexandre Maia
Alexandre Maia
Research
Alexandre is bridging the gap between science, intellectual property and the market. His 6+years of experience in the biotech industry allows him to recommend the most suitable IP & innovation strategy
Nicole Jackisch
Nicole Jackisch
Research
Comms
Nicole is a passionate venture builder and worked in innovation consulting for several years. She loves all things science and tech and wants to accelerate the translation from science to innovation.
Leonard Boltz
Leonard Boltz
Tech/Dev
Comms
Curiosity driven Product Manager with a passion for human centered innovation. Skilled in product discovery and building, with five years of experience in fast pace startup environments.
Thomas Alexander
Thomas Alexander
Comms
Governance
Thomas is a Bio-Engineer (NCSU '20) and Biotechnology Master's student (BOKU Vienna) focused on building a sustainable, equitable, and circular global economy built with biology on open principles.