Who We Are

Seeding Labs Staff

Nina Dudnik
Founder and Chief Executive Officer Nina has always tried to combine science and global development. She began the effort to build Seeding Labs as a graduate student in 2003. She was a finalist in the 2006 MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition and was awarded an Echoing Green fellowship in 2007 to formally launch and expand Seeding Labs. Nina is a 2010 TEDGlobal Fellow and received the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network Young Professional award for 2010. Nina worked for the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research in Italy where she provided advice on the integration of molecular genetics techniques into conservation and plant breeding activities. She was a Fulbright scholar in 2000 at the Africa Rice Center in Cote d’Ivoire studying rice introgression using molecular markers. Nina obtained her PhD in molecular biology from Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and a BSc in biochemistry from Brown University.

David Qualter
Operations Manager David comes to Seeding Labs from Image Arts, a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards where he provided logistics direction for the company with $110 million in annual sales. He brings 15 years of supply chain management experience with in depth knowledge of international logistics, warehouse execution and distribution center operations. Originally an art student at Southeastern Massachusetts University, David now uses his creative talents to develop logistics strategies that produce operational efficiencies and quality customer service.

Lena Vorias
Global Programs Associate After graduating Syracuse University in May 2010 with a Bachelor of Science in Public Health, Lena moved to Dublin, Ireland where she enrolled in a postgraduate program to receive a Master of Science in Global Health at Trinity College, Dublin. Lena completed her degree by moving to Tanzania to conduct independent research on maternal health. While living at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, she worked alongside doctors and nurses assessing the quality and appropriateness of maternal health services provided at the Majengo Health Centre.
Lena joined Seeding Labs in October 2011, where she now coordinates and assists with program planning and development for Seeding Labs’ Fellowship Program, Ambassador Program and Equipment Transfer Program.

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Board of Directors

Matt Gardner
Senior Vice President Business Development, TechAmerica

Leif Christofferson
Co-founder and Partner, Teotl Energy Partners

Rita Khanna
Legal Counsel, Aeras

Patricia Larrabee
Founder and President, Facility Logix

Paul Zorner
Director, Godavari Biorefineries Ltd.

Advisory Board

Pearl Freier
President of Cambridge BioPartners

Sakiko Fukuda-Parr
Professor of International Affairs at the New School

Stephen Grant
U.S. Sales Manager at YSI Life Sciences.

Calestous Juma
Professor of the Practice of International Development and Director of the Science, Technology, and Globalization Project at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Venkatesh Narayanamurti
Director of Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program, Benjamin Pierce Professor of Technology and Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School.
John A. and Elizabeth S. Armstrong Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Professor of Physics, Harvard University

Ruth Oniang’o
Founder, Rural Outreach Program
Editor-in-Chief, African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development