July 10-11, 2019
Wisconsin Institute for Discovery
Discovery Building, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Madison, WI

Plan to arrive on July 9 for invite-only instructor meetings, plus a fun evening event open to all Tiny Earthers!

Our community’s annual symposium will take place at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Discovery Building on July 10 and 11, 2019 (plan to travel to Madison on July 9 and participate in an evening pre-symposium event!). The 2019 symposium will feature our annual poster competition, highlight innovative research and discovery across our community, and serve as a connection hub for Tiny Earth’s student-scientists and implementing instructors. The symposium is jam-packed with opportunities for students, instructors, and other supporters to take our program to the next level.

The program will include “tapas talks”, a series of short presentations on an exciting array of topics, from new lab methodologies implemented in Tiny Earth courses to special projects that extend our reach beyond the university classroom. After a provided lunch and keynote address, the annual poster competition will commence. Day 1 (July 10) will conclude with plenty of time to explore the vibrant Madison community.

Day 2 will feature excursions to local biotech companies and UW Athletics, the graduate school and career expo, awards, and more!

Past Events

Welcome Remarks

Jo Handelsman

jo handelsmanProfessor of Plant Pathology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
Director of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery
Founder of Tiny Earth


Dr. Jo Handelsman is the Director of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a Vilas Research Professor, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor. She previously served as a science advisor to President Barack Obama as the Associate Director for Science at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and was on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin and Yale University before that. Tiny Earth as we know it was launched in June of 2018, but it truly began six years earlier when Jo Handelsman founded a course—then called “Microbes to Molecules”—at Yale University with the goal of addressing both the antibiotic crisis and the shortage of science trainees.

Sarah Miller

sarah millerExecutive Director of Tiny Earth

Sarah Miller was trained in microbiology, plant pathology, and botany and has since dedicated her career to transforming STEM education for a better, more equitable future. Her work focuses on advancing student access to learner-centered education through faculty development, curricular transformation, and institutional power dynamics. Most recently before becoming the Executive Director of Tiny Earth, she oversaw two services in Academic Technology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison: Faculty Engagement and Strategic Learning Technology Consulting. These two services are designed to scale transformation of UW courses to include active and blended learning. She also led REACH, a Provost-level initiative to redesign UW-Madison’s highest-enrollment courses to be more active and inclusive.

Nichole Broderick, PhD

Nichole BroderickScience & Training Director, Tiny Earth
Assistant Professor, University of Connecticut


Dr. Broderick taught the introductory biology course Microbes to Molecules, which is the core curriculum for Tiny Earth, at Yale University and continues to teach it at the University of Connecticut. Nichole received her PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Microbiology and Entomology and conducted her postdoctoral research in the lab of Bruno Lemaitre at the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland. Her research focuses on gut microbiota and their impact on host physiology and susceptibility to disease.

Mandela Barnes

Lieutenant Governor, State of Wisconsin


Mandela Barnes, a Milwaukee native, was born in the city’s poorest and the nation’s most incarcerated zip code. The difference for him was opportunity. He was raised in a middle class union household and learned the value of hard work early in life. Having attended both public and private schools, education has always been important to him, and making sure that every child in our state has a fair shot remains a top priority.

Greg Bleck, PhD

Global Head of R&D, Biologics, Catalent Biologics


Dr. Bleck has overall responsibility for development and acquisition of new products and technologies. Greg was an original employee of Gala Biotech (acquired by Catalent), where he used his knowledge of gene expression and transgenic systems to develop and optimize retrovector expression systems and the proprietary GPEx® process. Prior to joining Gala, Greg performed postdoctoral work at the University of Illinois-Urbana working in the areas of gene regulation and expression. He holds a B.S. and a Ph.D. in Endocrinology-Reproductive Physiology, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Greg has published over 60 research papers, co-authored three book chapters, and is an inventor or co-inventor on eight issued patents.

Keynote Address

Pieter C. Dorrestein

Pieter DorrensteinProfessor at the University of California, San Diego
Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Departments of Pharmacology and Pediatrics
Director, Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center
Co-Director, Institute for Metabolomics Medicine

Dr. Pieter Dorrestein studies how microbes use chemistry to interact with the world around them, using mass spectrometry to “eavesdrop on the molecular conversations between microbes and their world.” Read more…

AMR Speaker Panel

FRANCISCO BARONA GÓMEZ, PhD Cinvestav, UGA-Langebio Nagoya Protocol

ALESSANDRA EUSTAQUIO, PHD University of Illinois-Chicago Perspectives on natural product discovery from industry to academia

KATRINA VIVIANO, PhD UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine Veterinary Medicine and the Challenges of Antibiotic Use

LAUREL LEGENZA, PharmD, MS UW-Madison School of Pharmacy AMR Tracker

Todd Kelson

TODD KELSON, PhD Brigham Young University-Idaho Panel Facilitator

Tiny Earth Chemistry Hub: The Next Stop for Your Samples

Jennifer Heinritz

Marc Chevrette

Deepa Acharya

Schedule

Tuesday, July 9

1:00-8:00 pm Arrival and Check-in for guests staying in Slichter Hall
Check in at Carson Gulley Center, University of Wisconsin–Madison Campus
1515 Tripp Circle, Madison, WI 53706 (across the lawn from Slichter)
 2:00-5:00 Instructors: Meeting & Reception
Meet the new Executive Director of Tiny Earth, receive updates to the Tiny Earth program, and have all of your questions answered
Orchard View Room, Discovery Building


Students: Discovery Building Tour & Roundtable with Graduate and Professional Students
Get a behind the scenes look at the research labs at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery before hearing from graduate trainees about careers after undergraduate research
Meet in Atrium, Discovery Building

6:00-7:15 Cookout at Lakeshore Picnic Area
Please RSVP for this event during registration
Weather location: Lake Mendota Room, Dejope Hall
7:30-9:00 Meet & Greet Ice Cream Social for Students & Instructors
Get to know each other and have fun learning about the history of Tiny Earth during Tiny Earth Trivia!
Lake Mendota Room, Dejope Hall

Wednesday, July 10

7:00-8:00 am Breakfast at Carson’s Market (attendees staying at Slichter Hall only)
8:00-9:00 Check-in and Poster Setup
Atrium, Discovery Building (330 N Orchard St)
9:00-9:45 Welcome
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery BuildingDr. Jo Handelsman, Director, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery; Founder, Tiny Earth
Mandela Barnes, Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
Dr. Nichole Broderick, Science & Training Director, Tiny Earth; Asst. Professor, University of Connecticut
Sarah Miller, Executive Director, Tiny Earth
Dr. Greg Bleck, Global Head of R&D, Biologics, Catalent Pharma
9:45-10:45 Keynote Address: Community-wide Natural Product Discovery
Pieter Dorrestein, Professor of Pharmacology and Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery Building
10:45-11:00 Break
11:00-11:30 Tiny Earth Chemistry Hub: the Next Stop for your Samples
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery Building
11:30-12:30 pm Antibiotics and Resistance Panel
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery Building
12:30-1:30 Lunch
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery Building
1:30-2:30 Soil, the Earth’s Bounty
Jo Handelsman, Founder, Tiny Earth
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Discovery Building
2:30-4:30 Poster Session and Competition
Atrium, Discovery Building
4:30-4:45 Tiny Earth Community Group Photo
Atrium, Discovery Building
5:30-6:30 Dinner at Carson’s Market (attendees staying at Slichter Hall only)
5:00-9:00 Explore Madison! (open mic at the Memorial Union Terrace, Concerts on the Square, bowling/climbing/billiards at Union South)

Thursday, July 11

7:00-8:00 am Breakfast at Carson’s Market (attendees staying at Slichter Hall only)
8:30-10:30 Students: Excursions Departing from Discovery Building
Sign up for these excursions on day 1 of the symposium. Attendance is limited.
Meet at Discovery Building Welcome Desk. Buses leave at 8:35.
Group A – Tour of Catalent and Conversation with Industry Scientists and ExecutivesGroup B – Tour of Camp Randall and AMR conversation with UW Athletics (students, administrators, sports medicine staff)

Group C – Tour of Exact Sciences and Conversation with Industry Scientists and Executives


Instructors: Workshop & “Tapas Talks”
Tiny Earth Executive Director Sarah Miller: Teaching and Learning Workshop
Tiny Earth Partner Instructor “Tapas Talks”
Orchard View Room, Discovery Building

11:00-1:30 pm Biotech and Graduate School Career Fair and Expo (Lunch included)
Atrium, Discovery Building
1:30-2:00 Award Ceremony and Closing Remarks
2:00-5:00 Checkout (Slichter Hall) and Departure*

*Dormitory residents registered to stay an extra night at Slichter Hall will also be provided with dinner on July 11 and breakfast on July 12 at Carson’s Market