” LeadersLink gave me new ideas, new allies, a community of supporters, and the confidence to push boundaries for our community.”
Silvia Cerolini is the founder and CEO of Eyes on the Future, UK-based nonprofit accelerating research on Inherited Retinal Dystrophies that cause progressive sight loss in children, created in response to her daughter’s diagnosis. As part of her capstone project, Cerolini worked to rescue a shelved gene therapy by securing access to existing manufactured vials for continued clinical research. She developed a co development model with a biotech partner that integrates advocacy, scientific, and regulatory strategies, and she pioneered an approach to accelerate trial readiness through in silico modeling and university collaborations.
Established in 2020, the FasterCures LeadersLink Program is a capacity-building program to support the personal development of an emerging cadre of leaders of nonprofit organizations that fund or conduct biomedical research. LeadersLink focuses on building participants’ leadership skills and professional network and addressing their top priorities through mentorship, a capstone project, a series of convenings, virtual collaboration, and access to Milken Institute events and networks.