Dr Rumi Khandelia Recognised by the IUA on International Day of Women and Girls in Science
In 2015, the United Nations established 11 February as International Day of Women & Girls in Science to recognise the important role of women in Science and further encourage girls’ participation in science around the world. In honour of this, the Irish Universities Association (IUA) and the Irish Marie Skłodowska-Curie Office celebrated the achievements of a number of female awardees; among them was Dr Rumi Khandelia, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow in the School of Veterinary Medicine.
Rumi completed a PhD in Chemistry, with specialisation in Nanomedicine, at the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. She then went on to work in Indian multinational pharmaceutical companies for 3 years before moving to Ireland. Rumi is currently working as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine, with her research focused on the development of protein particles for intra-articular delivery of inflammatory drugs to treat osteoarthritic inflammation: ‘I have always had a passion for scientific research and wanted to challenge the limitations of the human body. I was fascinated with Nanomedicine as it has the potential to eliminate the current limitations of conventional medicine and can possibly be a way to cure many of today’s untreatable and life-threatening diseases.’
The Irish Marie Skłodowska-Curie office provides advice and support on preparing applications for Marie Skłodowska-Curie funding and the management of Marie Skłodowska-Curie awards.(opens in a new window) Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) are a European Commission Funding Programme which funds excellent and innovative research training as well as attractive career development and knowledge-exchange opportunities to better prepare researchers for current and future societal challenges; 42% of the awardees are women. Dr. Geraldine Canny, Head of the Irish Marie Skłodowska-Curie Office believes that the Programme ‘strengthens our national Research, Development and Innovation talent pipeline and meets policy goals, such as addressing UN Sustainable Development Goals.’
You can read more on some of the other female awardees here: