Sachiko Hirosue, Sci.D. is a bioengineer and educator, primarily interested in critical territories where science intersects with society. In practice, this translates to creating alternative spaces in dominant cultures to approach science and technology differently.
These intersections have led her in a number of surprising directions, including forays into public health outreach and art festival organization (from 2005-2008, as co-chair of the subtle technologies festival in Toronto, Canada). The desire for her own personal creative practice brought her to work in Switzerland at the Institute of Bioengineering, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), where she is a researcher and senior scientist exploring the interface of vaccine development, biomaterials and lymphatic biology.
The experience curating the program and organizing the SymbioticA workshop for the [in situ] Art•Body•Medicine theme for subtle technologies (2007) was the basis for her introduction to the hackteria network upon arrival in Switzerland. The 2011 Hackterialab in Romainmôtier, Switzerland inspired her to initiate fresh collaborations. Working with EPFL, and the hackteria network collaborators (Art)ScienceBLR (India) and Lifepatch (Indonesia), Sachiko created BIODESIGN for the REAL WORLD, an interdisciplinary collaboration focused on addressing real world water problems through analysis and mapping of water quality. Locally, she has set up atelier hirokouri, an “ego-lab” shared with an artist, and is a founding member of hackuarium.
Sachiko is dedicated to developing the future of scientific research, bringing the benefits of DIY methodology within academic institutions, teaching research ethics, and training Ph.D. students to become scientists. Through her endeavors, she bridges boundaries, practices outside-of-the-box thinking and builds collaborations to shape a world that reflects a diversity of possibilities.
Photo by Vanessa Lorenzo