As Head of Scientific Relations & Initiatives (SRI) for Sanofi NA R&D, Karen oversees R&D partnering initiatives with universities, public-private consortia and early startups to bring innovative solutions into the pipeline, strengthen cross-training opportunities and build relationships without borders for impact to patients. She has been at the forefront of innovating through collaborations throughout her >20 years of R&D experience where she has successfully led new therapeutic strategies and advanced novel targets through the R&D value chain. This includes leading CNS repair therapeutic strategies in both Research and Development. Recent achievements include high impact collaborative outcomes through the Sanofi seed-funding Award programs (iAwards, iDEA -TECH Awards) and larger multi-year strategic partnerships, which bring cutting-edge science and new technologies together through cross-disciplinary teams that help advance R&D projects. And the 2023 launch of the Open Innovation Lab, which welcomes external innovators into our state-of-the-art Cambridge Crossing labs for the first time to collaborate side-by-side with our scientists. Karen earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed postdoctoral training and Senior Staff Fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, NINDS, before joining Sanofi. She remains actively engaged in the scientific community and is an advocate for early career scientists.