Dr. Els Torreele is a global health and innovation expert, focusing on transforming medical R&D to address priority health needs and ensure equitable access to knowledge and technologies where and when needed, including for epidemic preparedness and response. A Bio-Engineer and PhD in biomedical sciences from Brussels University (VUB), for over 20 years she has combined scientific research, pharmaceutical R&D, policy analysis and research, and advocacy at Brussels University, Médecins Sans Frontières, Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, and Open Society Foundations. She is now an independent researcher and consultant, and a Visiting Policy Fellow at the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, University College London. A recent Rockefeller Bellagio Centre resident (March 2022), she’s also an Honorary Science Fellow at the VUB, author on over 50 international journal publications including in the Lancet, BMJ, Nature, and Vaccines, and a regular contributor to the societal debate around medical innovation and access through media and social media.
