# The Ersilia Open Source Initiative

## The organization

The [Ersilia Open Source Initiative](https://ersilia.io) (Ersilia) is a tech non-profit organization incorporated as a Foundation in Catalunya, Spain. We are located in [Norrsken House](https://www.norrsken.org/houses/barcelona), Barcelona.

### Mission

To equip laboratories in Low and Middle Income Countries with state of the art artificial intelligence tools for infectious and neglected disease research.

### Vision

A world with egalitarian access to healthcare.

### Goals

1. **To facilitate adoption of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) models for biomedical research**. We bridge the gap between data scientists and experimental researchers, making AI/ML expertise available to scientists worldwide.
2. **To support research into infectious and neglected diseases in LMICs**. We focus on implementing our tools locally in institutions across the global south. We prioritize projects where the scientific leadership is within domestic institutions and local researchers.
3. **To build capacity in data science and AI/ML**. Together with our partners, we organize workshops and seminars for experimental scientists.
4. **To advocate for open science**. We firmly believe that an open science framework is the key to establishing sustainable collaborations. We strive to keep openness at all levels, including scientific findings, strategic decision-making, and funding.

## Governance

As a Foundation, Ersilia is governed by the **Board of Trustees** (*Patronat*), a body that serves voluntarily and oversees the alignment between Ersilia's work and its philanthropic mission. The board meets a minimum of four times a year to provide strategic decision making and support to Ersilia’s core team. Our Trustees are:

* [Miquel Duran-Frigola](https://www.linkedin.com/in/miquel-duran-frigola-06b00347/), PhD (President)
* [Edoardo Gaude](https://www.linkedin.com/in/edo-gaude-02283945/), PhD (Secretary)
* [Anna Homs Riba](https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-homs-riba-79186190/), PhD (Vocal)

In addition, Ersilia is supported by a **Board of Advisors**:

* [Alacia Armstrong](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alacia-armstrong-she-her-0a215b3b/), MSc
* [Akash Rungta](https://www.linkedin.com/in/akash-rungta/), MSc

## How are we funded

Ersilia is funded by a combination of research grants from public entities (including the Spanish Government, the NIH, and the European Union), private foundations (including Schmidt Sciences, Mozilla Foundation and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) and donations from philantrophic bodies and corporate contributors (including Splunk, HPE, BlackRock and UPS). A full disclosure of our funding sources can be found in our [website](https://ersilia.io/about).

## Learn more about us

* Visit our [website](https://ersilia.io).
* Subscribe to our [newsletter](http://eepurl.com/hkX1sH).
* Follow us on [LinkedIn](https://linkedin.com/company/ersiliaio), [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/profile/ersilia.io) and [Mastodon](https://fosstodon.org/@ersiliaio).
* Read our stories covering open science, decolonised research, drug discovery, and more in [Medium](https://medium.com/ersiliaio).
* Browse our open source [tools](https://github.com/ersilia-os).
* Write to us at <hello@ersilia.io>.


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