Strategic Committee

For this 2025 edition, we have brought together a multidisciplinary and multi-sector strategic committee to ensure the quality, transparency and impact of the Prize.

• Dr Jean-Pierre Cravedi — President

Toxicologist, Chairman of Aprifel’s Scientific Advisory Board, former expert at ANSES and EFSA.

This former INRA research director headed the Xenobiotics UMR in Toulouse, before becoming deputy head of the Human Food Department from 2014 to 2019. His work has led him to study the fate and effects of several contaminants present in the environment or in food, including endocrine disruptors.

• Prof Jean-François Narbonne — Honorary President

Doctor in molecular biology and toxicology, former expert for national health agencies (ANSES, CSHPF) and international agencies (Council of Europe, EFSA, UNEP). He is the author of the book Sang pour sang toxique (published by Thierry Souccar), which makes the concept of toxicology accessible to the general public and provides working tools for all experts.

• Dr Marc Veilly

Marc Veilly holds a doctorate in veterinary medicine and an MBA (Master of Business Administration) from HEC Paris. He is a director of the Association centrale d’entraide vétérinaire, and a consultant to agri-food and pharmaceutical companies. He also holds the distinction of Officier du Mérite agricole.

• Dr Hanan Osman-Ponchet

Dr. Hanan Osman-Ponchet combines scientific expertise with business acumen. She holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Toxicology and Pharmacology, along with a PhD in Biochemistry, Cellular and Molecular Biology. To further strengthen her leadership skills, Dr. X completed a Global Executive-MBA program in project management and innovation & entrepreneurship at SKEMA Business School in France.

She is the founder and CEO of PKDERM. She leverages her scientific background to drive the company’s growth by forging strategic partnerships and fostering collaborative innovation in the field of animal-free testing. In this role, she oversees the scientific planning, development, and execution of various projects focused on in vitro testing methods for evaluating the efficacy and safety of cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

• Dr Marco Straccia 

Dr. Marco Straccia helps creating, accepting and delivering economically sustainable human-focused health solutions merging scientific and business strategy. He is the CEO and co-Founder of SCIENCE&STRATEGY, known under the EU registered brand of FRESCI, and together with his team of scholars and business experts study, design and deploy sustainable evidence-based strategies for governmental and private organizations. As an academic, he was associate professor and researcher in Stem Cell Technology and Regenerative Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Barcelona. His research was always focused on neurodegenerative diseases. He holds a PhD in Neuroscience, a Master in Business Administration, a Master in International Health and Tropical Medicine and a BSc in Biology.

• Sophie Léon

Sophie Léon holds a master’s degree in oncology. With 20 years’ experience in translational research, she is now a recognized expert in the field of cancer histology. Sophie is operational manager of the ex vivo platform at the Léon Bérard Hospital and the Lyon Cancer Research Center, where she manages preclinical projects aimed at testing new therapies on organotypic ex vivo culture models of human tumors from different cancers, in order to optimize tomorrow’s treatments and obtain the best possible response for the benefit of patients, without using animals. In association with Dr Julien Marie, she is the winner of the DVES 2023 prize in the “Development and applicability” category.

• Dr Julien Marie

Julien Marie hold is PhD in Immuno-virology from Ecole Normale Superieure of Lyon in 2002. After working on the immunosuppression induced by Measles virus, Julien Marie obtained a Human Frontier Science Program fellowship and joined the Rudensky lab in Seattle, USA. Now his lab is based at the Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL) and is focused on the regulation of the immune response in cancers and in cancer associated inflammation in the intestine. Dr Marie was awarded of numerous prizes including the Jules Courmont academy of science (2007, Lyon), Bettencourt-Schuller foundation Prize (2011 Paris), the French Society of immunology (2010 Paris ), the European I award Sanofi (2019), and the DVES prize (2023, Paris).