Raeka Aiyar, Ph.D., is the Director of Scientific Strategy and Communications at the Stanford Genome Technology Center. Trained in genetics, functional genomics, and bioinformatics at the University of Waterloo, she received her Ph.D. at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory studying yeast models of mitochondrial disease using genomic and biochemical approaches.
Since then, Raeka has spent years exercising her passion for science communication, engaging a variety of audiences through writing, training, and outreach. In her current role, she oversees and implements scientific communications at SGTC, including a heavy focus on fundraising, scientific strategy, program management, and collaboration building.
Her main areas of scientific focus – and those of SGTC – are precision health approaches (especially towards chronic fatigue syndrome), functional genomics, developing technologies for molecular and cellular characterization, and synthetic biology.