In this series “Meet the people behind Biotech Booster” we introduce you to the passionate people who are involved in our mission.
A big part of our team consists of Biotech Booster business- and impact developers. They operate on a national level within five distinct Thematic Clusters (TC’s) that each represent specific biotech focus areas. Our business- and impact developers collaborate nationally on a daily base to identify early stage high-potential biotechnology findings. They guide scientists and aspiring entrepreneurs in their journey to transform their ideas into successful biotech businesses so that biotechnology findings have more and a faster positive impact on society.
Name
Anouk van Weert
What is your role within Biotech Booster?
I am an Impact Developer for Biotech Booster on behalf of the four green Universities of Applied Sciences: Hogeschool Inholland, HAS Green Academy, Aeres Hogeschool and Hogeschool Van Hall Larenstein. I’m part of Thematic Cluster 2 and we focus on Agriculture & Food.
Can you describe your role in a nutshell?
I represent the interests of the green universities of applied sciences. My goal is to connect their strong valorisation potential with the broader Biotech Booster ecosystem, working closely with other Impact Developers to strengthen both.
A key part of my work is listening with a critical and curious ear to lecturers, who are the experts in their field, and translating their ideas into forms that benefit both their institution and the Biotech Booster program.
What motivated you to join Biotech Booster’s mission?
I strongly believe that taking concrete steps and following through on ideas is just as important as generating them in the first place. Too often, great ideas remain stuck in the early stages, and without valorisation, there is huge potential for real impact lost. The agrifood domain is one that touches everyone’s life, and it offers accessible and meaningful opportunities to drive progress, particularly in areas like sustainability and animal welfare.
What appeals to me in Biotech Booster’s mission is how it helps amazing ideas from researchers, people who truly get it, make the leap from lab to real life. The green universities of appplied sciences and Biotech Booster enable these ideas to become concrete, impactful projects. Supporting that process is where I believe we can truly accelerate change, and where my own mission aligns perfectly with theirs.
What do you love most about your role? Pick one thing!
I chose agrifood because food is never just food, it brings together nutrition, identity, culture, and social connection. It’s also a very concrete way to apply all kinds of knowledge to real-world problems. For me, it’s a powerful tool to address sustainability. I also want to be a voice for nature and animals, those who can’t advocate for themselves.
You recently joined the team. What are your ambitions and what do you hope to achieve in the coming years?
I believe societal impact and the development of future ventures are not driven by strong IP alone and we all need each other’s efforts. We urgently need change, and that requires collaboration across the innovation chain and existing networks and ecosystems. I aim to contribute to building those bridges and accelerating solutions that truly matter.
If you could have dinner with any scientist, living or dead, who would it be, what would you ask them and why?
If I could speak with one scientist from the past, it would be Rosalind Franklin. Not to ask her technical questions, but to explore the current world through her perspective, to see today’s scientific frontiers through the eyes of someone who helped uncover the structure of life itself.
I imagine asking her about the systems she saw forming in her time, the early whispers of molecular biology, the first glimpses of genetic engineering. There’s no way to predict the future, of course, but her way of thinking about the pressing topics of her era might help me better understand the present and its challenges.
By reflecting on her approach, her questions, and her unfinished ideas, I might gain insight into which of today’s efforts, in synthetic biology, plant-based innovation, or microbiome research, could shape the world of tomorrow. Sometimes, it’s through the lens of the past that the future becomes clearer.
Curious about the rest of the people behind Biotech Booster? Keep an eye out on our LinkedIn page to stay up-to-date!
