Round table on Careers Across Sectors – Navigating Between Academia and Industry

We are eager to listen to our four distinguished speakers who have successfully navigated both worlds:

• Paul THOMAS (KREATiS) : Dr. Paul Thomas holds a doctorate in aquatic ecotoxicology and is recognised for his expertise in industrial chemicals, agrochemicals and biocides. With over 30 years of experience in ecotoxicology, he began his career at Citoxlab (now Charles River) as Study Director before practicing Environmental Risk Assessement at Arkema and then leading a reg/R&D team in AkzoNobel. In 2008, he joined CEHTRA as Director of its Lyon office, and in 2014 founded KREATiS, a company specializing in high-accuracy predictive models for chemical safety. Today, as President of KREATiS, he guides the company’s scientific strategy, combining his deep regulatory-services background with cutting-edge predictive toxicology research. Under his leadership, KREATiS has become a pioneer in in silico toxicology to assess toxicity of chemicals.
• Luigi LUCINI (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) : Dr. Luigi Lucini holds a Ph.D. in “Pesticides chemistry, biochemistry and ecology”. Following a 5-years experience in a private company in the field of fine chemicals, where he was responsible for part of R&D and in charge of the discussion with EU and US competent bodies for the assessment of regulatory dossiers, in 2008 he moved to Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Piacenza, as a researcher. Since 2022 he is Full professor in agricultural chemistry and responsible for the metabolomics facility, dealing with plant, food, microbiology, and environmental metabolomics.
• Virginie DUCROT (Bayer Crop Science) : Virginie Ducrot holds a PhD in ecotoxicology from the University of Metz. She started her career as assistant professor at the University of Anger, training students and publishing scientific papers, but she missed an applied dimension for her research and thus joined INRA, the French National Institute for Agronomy Research as Senior Environmental Scientist for 8 years. While working at INRA, she joined EFSA as an external expert, contributing (as rapporteur) to the development of the first EFSA scientific opinion on how to use mathematical modelling to predict effects of chemicals in the environment. Having a good understanding of how academia and authorities work on the topic of Environmental Safety, she joined Bayer Crop Science in 2014 as a scientist in R&D. After evolving at different positions, she is now Group Leader - Ecotoxicology at Bayer Crop Science.
• Laurent LAGADIC (Bayer Crop Science) : Laurent Lagadic holds a Doctorate of Fundamental Toxicology and is now Senior Science Fellow, Environmental Safety Assessment and Strategy at Bayer Crop Science. Involved for more than 30 years in the study of the effects of pesticides in aquatic organisms, his work has been focused on physiological changes induced by pesticides, and their consequences on individual reproductive performances and population dynamics. Researcher at INRA, the French National Institute for Agronomic Research for 20 years, he moved to Bayer 11 years ago to lead the development and implementation of strategies for evaluating potential endocrine-disrupting properties of Bayer pesticides.

Drawing from their rich professional journeys, our speakers will share personal insights into the contrasts and synergies between public and private research — from scientific approaches to career development.

Don’t miss this open and interactive discussion — a unique opportunity to gain firsthand perspectives, ask your questions, and reflect on your own career path.

Registration mandatory: registration is free but mandatory. Please register here: https://evento.renater.fr/survey/pharm-era-round-table-on-careers-across-sectors-navigating-between-academia-and-industry-02-12-25-09-00am-12-00am-paris-time-ocibdz8s