The International Council of Biotechnology Associations (ICBA) is a coalition of non-profit, national biotechnology trade associations formed to promote public understanding of, and to advocate for, public policies that support the growth of the innovative biotechnology industries. The ICBA represents the global voice of the industry in international fora with the goal of promoting continued innovation in the human health, agriculture, and industrial and environmental sectors.

ICBA Members

Council Chairs

Claire Skentelbery (Chair, ICBA)
Director General, EuropaBio

Claire holds a PhD in biochemistry and has worked in the development of scientific networks and associations for over 15 years. She started her career as part of the Cambridge biotech cluster in the UK within the cluster business network and was a founder of the Council of European BioRegions, a network of biotech clusters across Europe. She brought herself and CEBR to Brussels in 2009 where she also took on the role of SG for the European Biotechnology Network, working across sectors, organisations and countries as part of the EBN mission to facilitate partnerships. In January 2017, Claire took up her role as DG of the Nanotechnology Industries Association which she successfully led until recently.

Wallace Lin, PhD (Vice-Chair, ICBA)
Secretary-General, Taiwan BIO

Dr. Wallace, Chih-Hwa Lin, Secretary-General of Taiwan BIO, has close to 30 years of experience in management, regulatory, and government policy of science and technology. He has been the Chief Administrative Officer of BioMed Taiwan following his tenure as the Director of Biotechnology, Health, Medicine, and Agriculture in the Board of Science and Technology Executive Yuan of Taiwan(BOST) of Taiwan. Wallace was the Acting Deputy Executive Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE), the regulatory agency for the review of Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, Health Food, and Health Technology Assessment in Taiwan. He has been one of the full-time Science and Technology Advisors of the Ministry of Economic Affairs. Wallace is the founder and CEO of SynNovate, a technology-based firm established in Taiwan and with a presence in Asia. Wallace was Director of the Specialty Polymers Lab in Union Chemical Laboratories, ITRI, and an Adjunct Associated Professor of Biotechnology in National Chaio-Tung University and Chung-Yuan Christian University

ICBA Team

Hilary Stiss
Executive Director, International Council of Biotechnology Associations

As Director for International Affairs at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), Ms. Stiss is responsible for managing the industry association’s program of international advocacy and outreach for Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Turkey and South Africa regions. In this position, she engages with foreign officials in these regions to promote policies that support a strong biotechnology industry as well as to resolve policy issues relevant to the industry. Hilary also works on issues at the multilateral organizations as well as acts as program director for the International Council on Biotechnology Associations (ICBA).

Before taking this position at BIO, Hilary was a Graduate Fellow in the Scientific and Regulatory Affairs Department at the trade association, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). Prior to this appointment, Hilary received her Master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where she studied international political economy and international trade. During her studies, Hilary worked as a research associate in Amgen’s Washington, DC office.

Hilary completed her undergraduate degree cum laude with honors from Colgate University in 2009, where she studied conflict resolution and history.

Contact ICBA

International Council of
Biotechnology Associations

1201 New York Avenue NW
Suite 1300
Washington, DC 20024
icba@bio.org