During this event, attendees will hear from Orr Yarkoni, CEO of Colorifix, finalist for the prestigious Earthshot Prize 2023. The Earthshot Prize recognises the most innovative solutions to the world's greatest environmental challenges, i.e. to protect and restore nature, clean or air, revive our oceans, build a waste-free world and fix our climate. 

The winners are to be awarded £1 million to scale their solutions, and all finalists receive tailored support from a global alliance of partners. Colorifix was a finalist of the 2023 Earthshot Prize in the category "Build a Waste-Free World". Colorifix uses engineering biology and biotechnology to create sustainable dyes that reduce the fashion industry's use of water and harmful chemicals. 

The event will consist of a presentation by Dr Orr Yarkoni, CEO of Colorifix, talking about Colorifix vision and contribution to sustainable future, and how biology is enabling this bold vision. After the presentation there will be a discussion led by Dr Liliya Serazetdinova, head of business development and impact at the Earlham Institute, about Orr's personal journey into entrepreneurship. 

The purpose of this event is to inspire biologists including local students, researchers, and members of the public who have a keen interest in seeing how biology could help to address global challenges. 

16:00  Arrival and networking

16:15 Presentation by Dr Orr Yarkoni, CEO of Colorifix Ltd entitled How biology is enabling this bold vision to save our planet 

16:45  Discussion between Dr Orr Yarkoni  and Dr Liliya Serazetdinova, head of business development and impact at the Earlham Institute about Dr Orr Yarkoni's personal journey into entrepreneurship

17:30 Networking

Dr Orr Yarkoni, CEO and co-founder of Colorifix Ltd. 

After his early education in Portugal, Orr did his undergraduate, Masters and PhD degrees at Newcastle University, where he studied nanomaterials, biochemistry and synthetic biology. Orr went on to Jim's lab at the University of Cambridge to apply these skills to the arsenic biosensor project and they spun out a novel and sustainable approach to dyeing textiles.

Dr Liliya Serazetdinova, head of business development and impact at the Earlham Institute. 

With PhD in plant genetics and biology and over 14 years scientific expertise, Liliya changed her career to work in commercialisation of research and building academia-business collaborations, supporting development of innovative technologies and products, and entrepreneurship among researchers. Liliya's expertise includes plant sciences, biotechnology, agricultural technologies, and computational biology. Liliya is passionate about translating technological innovation into economic, social and environmental impacts.

The Enterprise Centre is a short walk from the centre of the University of East Anglia campus and the main car park. The building is located on University Drive, close to both the sports park and Earlham Hall.

This event is free to attend and open to all. Spaces are limited at so advanced booking is essential. RSB members can register through the link at the top of the page after they log in. Non-RSB members can email Liliya Serazetdinova at liliya.serazetdinova@earlham.ac.uk to register.