Professor Albert van den Berg has been announced as the new Scientific Director of MIRA, the University of Twente’s Research Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine.
The Executive Board has appointed the UT professor to this prestigious post for a period of five years starting on 1 May 2014. Professor Van den Berg currently heads the BIOS/Lab-on-a-Chip research group that forms part of the MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology. As Scientific Director of MIRA, he succeeds Professor Maarten IJzerman who has done a splendid job as Interim Director.
About the new director
Albert van den Berg is one of the University of Twente’s most eminent scientists and is at the international forefront in his field. He has a range of awards and honours to his name. In 2002 he was awarded the Simon Stevin Master prize by the STW Technology Foundation, the highest honour in Dutch engineering. In 2008 he received an ERC Advanced Research Grant, followed by an ERC Proof of Concept in 2011 and 2013. For his research in the Lab-on-a-Chip (minute laboratories etched into tiny pieces of silicon) field he received the 2009 Spinoza Prize, the highest scientific honour in the Netherlands. In December 2010, the University of Twente’s Executive Board conferred upon him the title of University Professor.
His current research focuses on micro-analysis and nanosensors, nanofluidics and research into biological cells and tissues on chips, with applications in the fields of healthcare and environmental science.
Albert van den Berg is a member of the Royal Dutch Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), the Royal Holland Society of Sciences (KHMW) and the Health Council of the Netherlands. He is a board member of the Chemical and Biological Microsystems Society and the Royal Netherlands Chemical Society (KNCV), and associate editor of the journal Lab on a Chip. He has co-authored over 250 papers and over 15 patents, and has been involved in more than five spin-off companies. Last year he was included in The Analytical Scientist Power List of the Top 100 Analytical Chemists.
Since 2012, Albert van den Berg has been an honorary professor at the South China Normal University in the Chinese city of Guangzhou.
The Executive Board is delighted with the appointment of Albert van den Berg. The recommendation issued by the Appointment Advisory Committee was unanimous and had the backing of MIRA’s Institutional Council. "Van den Berg is a scientist of stature and has everything it takes to be a leading ambassador for both the Institute and the University. His heart belongs in Twente and he can be relied upon to represent the interests of the region as a whole with flair and commitment. Van den Berg has an eye for attracting, developing and inspiring young talent and we are convinced that his group’s research is a solid match for MIRA’s profile,” says Executive Board President Victor van der Chijs.
Note to the press
For more information, please contact Bertyl Lankhaar (+31 (0)53 489 2210), spokesperson for the Executive Board of the University of Twente.
