Third annual Bioscience Summit caters to bring in younger generation

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — The bioscience industry has been rapidly expanding with research, people, and ideas. This year’s third annual Bioscience Summit brings together those ideologies and more.

“We just want to understand what are our greatest strengths and our advantages. We want to lean into those, and we want to find out where our gaps and challenges are and address those. And we think by bringing the right kind of speakers and presenters locally and also nationally and internationally to share their experiences, and their experiences working in other marketplaces,” said Ryan Aasheim, Chief Business Development Officer for the Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corporation.

This year’s summit focused on the building of a biotech ecosystem. Speakers focused on the challenges of today’s environment and the new research they have been working on.

“It’s about human health, it’s about quality of life, it’s about saving lives. One of the keynote presenters will be talking about curing rare disease. Things using crisper technology and gene editing, and genetics that didn’t exist twenty years ago or even ten years ago. Now, we have an opportunity to change somebody’s life and the quality of their life,” said Aasheim.

High schoolers to college students also had a chance to learn about many of the opportunities to get a job or further their education. For Jessie Rock, this is an opportunity to spread the word about the planning of the Fargo-Moorhead Science Museum.

“One of the zones that we plan in the museum is called the growing scientist lab. And in it we’re going to interact with real scientists, real tools, and real data…The idea is that in a very short visit, you can do hands-on science, meet a real scientist with a real career and a company name, and then interact with our exhibits and look how the science is connected to your own life,” said Jessie Rock, Executive Director of Fargo-Moorhead Science Museum.

Rock said that many of the bioscience companies have helped lend a hand in the creation of the museum. So far, they have raised $11.4 million out of their $70 million goal. But they are grateful for the people in this industry who helped them get to where they are now.

As the summit continues, many will learn about providing health care to cultivating bioscience in their studies.