Short interview with Programme Director Rajni Hatti-Kaul

What is your educational background?

"I have a PhD in Biochemistry."
 
Do you have any experience from industry?

"I have not worked in an industry, but I collaborate with several companies in my research projects and I have myself co-founded five start-ups so far. One of the start-ups has recently become a public company."
 
What drew you to a career in academia?

"I enjoy research and the freedom to think and try out my own ideas."
 
What are your research interests?

"I'm interested in doing research that contributes towards a sustainable society. Some examples are to use biotechnology as a tool to decouple production from fossil feedstock and make carbon-neutral products, and to develop alternatives to antibiotics to reduce the growing problem of antibiotic resistance."

See Rajni's publications in the Lund University Research Portal
 
What is your driving force as a teacher?

"To share my knowledge and inspire students to use what they learn to be creative and follow their interests."
 
Is there any cutting-edge research going on in the department that the students benefit from? If yes, how?

"There are lot of good researchers at Lund University doing highly interesting biotechnology-related research in the areas of environment, food, medicine, etc. Moreover, there are possibilities to do cutting-edge interdisciplinary research in collaboration with researchers from other fields."