Unlocking innovation: the entrepreneurial journey of Science Gallery Mediators
Lee Sherlock and Brendan Martin attribute their experience as Science Gallery mediators as instrumental in founding a groundbreaking startup for cancer treatment
Lee Sherlock, Brendan Martin, and Sinah Behsanger, the team behind Meta-Flux (2023)
As a transformative venture, Meta-Flux is a testament to the impact of the Science Gallery model and the power of interdisciplinary thinking. Founded by Lee Sherlock, Brendan Martin, and Sinah Behsanger, Meta-Flux is advancing the world of personalised medicine by harnessing systems biology and artificial intelligence to accelerate diagnostic and prognostic tools for lung cancer.
Lee Sherlock and Brendan Martin credit their experience as mediators at Science Gallery Dublin for equipping them with invaluable entrepreneurship skills. Lee, the CEO of Meta-Flux, acknowledges Science Gallery as the place where he first grasped the essence of leadership. The mediator model facilitated their critical thinking and interpersonal skills, enhanced their student experience, and developed their creative capacity–all crucial for their future careers.
“It has been invaluable because it paints the path for you. Science Gallery fosters an openness to out-of-the-box thinking and collaboration.”
Mediators are the public face of Science Gallery. They are young tertiary students and graduates with a passion for science, technology and art, sparking peer-to-peer conversations with the public. As well as supporting Science Gallery, mediators gain invaluable skills.
Deviating from conventional pitching advice in their start-up phase, they returned to their Science Gallery roots, fostering engagement and understanding of their mission, resulting in greater funding success. Lee and Brendan emphasise the importance of adaptability and creativity, values instilled in them by Science Gallery. Their connection with the Network remains strong, with collaborations and continued engagement envisioned in the future.
Mediators of the exhibition MENTAL at Science Gallery Melbourne at the University of Melbourne (2022)
“We found that the Science Gallery became a space to learn new science and question old dogmas, a trait we later found to be vital to the creation of Meta-Flux”
As they navigate forward, Meta-Flux is keen on fostering collaborations with pharmaceutical companies and hospitals that function as clinical trial providers to help them detect potential adverse drug reactions early on.
Compiled by: Jahitza Balaniuk and Ana Prendes, Science Gallery International, 2024