October 23, 2020
Dr. Carl Hansen is a pillar of the biomedical research community in British Columbia, where he is the CEO of AbCellera, a company known for its industry leading antibody discovery research. His passion for science is not new; for Dr. Hansen it has been a lifelong interest. “I don’t have a clear recollection of when I decided to be a scientist. I do recall that in 3rd grade my teacher called a special meeting with my parents to tell them that my brother (identical twin) and I showed talent for physics and math that they should try to cultivate it.”
This talent was indeed cultivated and remained an area of particular interest during high school. “I was always interested in biology, but in high school and university I was much more interested in physics and math. Part of this was that everyone thought it was hard, and I liked that challenge.” This passion, perhaps fueled by science idol Isaac Newton, continued beyond school. When Dr. Hansen was ready to head off to university, he chose to complete an undergraduate degree in Engineering Physics & Honors Math at the University of British Columbia, followed by a PhD in Applied Physics at Caltech, with a focus on biotechnology. “Happily, I have found that my training in physics and math was great preparation for a career in biomedical research!”.
Dr. Hansen and AbCellera’s impact has been invaluable during this pandemic, leading to the world’s first COVID-19-specific potential therapeutic antibody candidate to enter clinical trials. We suspect that all of Dr. Hansen’s hard work has been fueled, at least in part, by his love of Vancouver coffee and early morning runs in the gorgeous endowment lands surrounding UBC – although his passion for taking on new challenges certainly helps!
You can join Dr. Carl Hansen on October 28th as he speaks at the Genome BC 11th annual Don Rix Distinguished Keynote Address “Battle Lines: Fighting COVID-19 at the Intersection of Policy, Treatment and Prevention” with co-speakers Drs. Mel Krajden and Bonnie Henry.
Learn more about this event and register here: events.genomebc.ca/drdk2020
