Clara Prats has been appointed as Director of the new Center for Core Facilities
New Center Director: “Research excellence and innovation can only be achieved through access to state-of-the-art technologies and services.
What motivated you to apply for the position?
"The creation of the Center for Core Facilities (CCF) is a unique opportunity to boost excellence and innovation at SUND, and I applied for this position to contribute to this important mission. Research excellence and innovation can only be achieved through access to state-of-the-art technologies and services.
This is why core facilities have emerged as essential pillars within research institutions and deserve proper recognition and institutional integration. The need is not local but global. Universities and research institutions across the globe meet to discuss the importance of shaping these new entities."
"The aim of the new Center for Core Facilities is to improve existing research infrastructures and services at SUND to offer the best possible framework for research, education and innovation.
I consider Clara a very strong director, and I look forward to working with her on developing the core facilities – an area within which Clara has solid experience and competences, both at SUND and at national and international levels. Clara is extremely competent when it comes to establishing partnerships, attracting external funding and supporting staff and technology development within core facilities.", says Associate Dean of Research Hans Bräuner.
What are your visions as Director of Center for Core Facilities?
"The CCF should become an institutionally, nationally and internationally recognized center for health and medical science technologies and services.
The CCF will synergically bring together existing excellent core facilities, and coordinate and drive their strategic organization and developments to not only support but also drive excellence and innovation at SUND.
To achieve this, the CCF will work to enable key partnerships beyond the center towards the sustainability of technology excellence at SUND."
What challenges do you see for CCF?
"As life science technologies become more and more complex and expensive, their sustainability is only possible through their centralization and implementation as open access services.
At the same time, it is important to keep core facilities close to strategically relevant research environments. Finding win-win collaboration models to bring research and method development into core facilities, without detrimental impact on the sustainability of excellent service provision will be key.
The CCF will only succeed through very strong collaborations and partnerships with all SUND Departments and Centres to create these bridges between core facilities and research groups."
There are already many core facilities at SUND's departments and centers. What are you looking forward to in relation to this collaboration?
"I look forward to collaborating with SUND Departments and Centers to support their researchers and local infrastructures.
The center will create opportunities for core facility teams to network and identify synergic collaboration opportunities and common needs.
Importantly, and when relevant, CCF will facilitate and support the sharing of local facilities."
CV – Clara Prats
Since 2022: Director of the National Infrastructure Danish BioImaging
Since 2021: Director of Light Microscopy and Image Analysis Technology Platform at the Core Facility for Integrated Microscopya
Since 2010: Associate Professor in Human Biology, Dep. Biomedical Science, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen
2010 – 2021: Head of Light Microscopy at the Core Facility for Integrated Microscopy, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen
2008 – 2010: Postdoctoral fellowship at Dep. Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen
2006 – 2007: Assistant professor at Dep. Medical Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen
2002 – 2006: Post-doctoral fellowship at Dep. Medical Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Education
2022 – 2024: Executive Master in Management of Research Infrastructures (EMMRI), University of Bicocca, Milano, Italy
1997 – 2002: PhD, Biomedical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Spain
1992 – 1997: MSc in Biology, University of Barcelona, Spain
Contact
Lisbeth Lassen
Communication Consultant
lisbeth.lassen@adm.ku.dk
Clara Prats
Center Director
cprats@sund.ku.dk