21 Jun 2023

Meet the people at WISE: Daniel Simon, Research Coordinator

Daniel Simon is American and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. He has a PhD in Physics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where he first entered the world of organic (bio)electronics.

In 2007, he moved to Sweden to do a postdoc at Linköping University focusing on bio/therapeutic applications of organic electronics. Since then, he has risen to group leader and finally Professor.

-I’ve always loved science fiction, and now I lead a group of 15 researchers turning sci-fi into sci-fact using organic bioelectronics and bridging the gap between biology and technology, says Daniel.


You are the research coordinator at WISE. What does the role imply?
As research coordinator, I coordinate (together with Erna Delczeg) all aspects of WISE-funded research. This includes the grant calls and evaluations for academic and industrial PhD and postdoc projects, as well as assisting with strategic recruitment and the associated PhD and postdoc recruitment processes. I’m also deeply involved in coordinating the Research and Technology Platform infrastructure investments. Finally, from my perspective as Professor and Organic Bioelectronics group leader at Linköping University, I provide a research-leader’s perspective on many day-to-day questions and tasks in the Program Office.

 

What would you say is the best versus the most challenging part of your job?
Best part? Easy! Getting to work on such a large and influential initiative that I believe will have real impact on Swedish, regional, and international efforts to enable a sustainable future! Of course, the scope of WISE leads to the most challenging aspects: coordinating research proposals and grants across so many universities and individual researchers. But so far, it’s been great fun!