The spotlight will be on the biotech industry at the Capital Region Biotechnology Innovation Day on Friday, September 16, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., in the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The event, hosted and co-sponsored by the CBIS, will showcase life science research and bring together innovative biotechnology researchers and institutions, business executives, academics, and possible collaboration partners from within the Capital Region of New York state. The event is presented by Bioconnex, a partnership of senior academics and industry executives from the Capital Region biotechnology community and the Center for Economic Growth (CEG).

The program will include presentations by industry speakers, who will discuss a variety of issues related to the region’s biotechnology industry, and will include networking breaks to cultivate relationships among participants.

This year’s topics include “Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in New York State,” “New York State and Capital Region Biomedical Initiatives,” and “View from Industry Executives.” The event also will include presentations by regional biotechnology innovators before a panel of industry leaders, during which innovators will have the opportunity to present their products and research.

“Events such as this Biotechnology Innovation Day are critical to promotion of the networking and collaboration that are essential for successful biotech research and development,” said Glenn Monastersky, CBIS director of operations and professor of practice of biomedical engineering.  “At CBIS, we are launching a biotech-focused Industrial Partners Program with the goal of enhancing our research collaboration efforts with biotech, biomedical, and pharma companies. Only by sharing knowledge, resources, and ideas with an array of academic and industrial partners will we identify and solve the key challenges to human health and the environment.” 

Research collaborations such as this fulfill the vision of The New Polytechnic, an emerging paradigm for higher education which recognizes that global challenges and opportunities are so great they cannot be adequately addressed by even the most talented person working alone. Rensselaer serves as a crossroads for collaboration—working with partners across disciplines, sectors, and geographic regions—to address complex global challenges, using the most advanced tools and technologies, many of which are developed at Rensselaer. Research at Rensselaer addresses some of the world’s most pressing technological challenges—from energy security and sustainable development to biotechnology and human health. The New Polytechnic is transformative in the global impact of research, in its innovative pedagogy, and in the lives of students at Rensselaer. 

Registration for the Capital Region Biotechnology Innovation Day is $25 for students and postdocs, $35 for Bioconnex members (includes Rensselaer faculty and staff), and $50 for all others, and includes breakfast and a barbecue lunch. For more information or to register, go to http://go.ceg.org/bioconnex.

About Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, founded in 1824, is America’s first technological research university. The university offers bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in engineering; the sciences; information technology and web sciences; architecture; management; and the arts, humanities, and social sciences. Rensselaer faculty advance research in a wide range of fields, with an emphasis on biotechnology, nanotechnology, computational science and engineering, data science, and the media arts and technology. The Institute has an established record of success in the transfer of technology from the laboratory to the marketplace, fulfilling its founding mission of applying science “to the common purposes of life.” For more information, please visit http://www.rpi.edu.