Avril A. B. Robertson is Professor and Director of Biotechnology Programs at The University of Queensland. Avril completed a commercially focused degree and PhD in bio-organic chemistry at the University of St Andrews, Scotland in 2000. She also has qualifications in both secondary and tertiary teaching. Avril had a successful 10 years in the UK biotechnology and drug discovery industry before moving to The University of Queensland as Head of Medicinal Chemistry in the Center for Drug Design and Discovery in 2011. In 2017, she progressed to full Professor and Director of Biotechnology and also sits on the Board of Directors of the National Professional Science Masters Association in the USA. The Biotechnology programs Avril leads are consistently ranked in the top 10 globally (Shanghai Ranking 2017 onwards). Avril’s research group focuses on discovery and development of novel therapeutics to treat inflammatory disease, infectious disease and cancer. Her collaborative work on NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitors, and the associated intellectual property, were commercialised in one of the largest ever biotech Series A investments to any Australian university.