Sonja Isken receives Zilveren Zandloper Education Award 2020
Sonja Isken, Biotechnology program director in Wageningen, has won the Zilveren Zandloper. She receives the prize for her work and dedication to the Wageningen Biotechnology program. She was coordinator of the Biotechnology curriculum for the past 20 years, during which time she developed a design-oriented program that connects the different disciplines that are central to biotechnology - such as microbiology, chemistry, process technology. The jury specifically mentioned the assignment given to biotechnology students at the beginning of this year to develop a technology platform for the production of COVID-19 vaccines; an approach that obliges students to tackle an integral problem in a team. While the announcement was made online during NBC-20, NBV chairman Richard van Kranenburg paid a visit to the Wageningen campus the day after the event to personally hand Sonja the Silver Hourglass statue. In addition to the statue, the winner will receive 2500 euros.