BiographyElisabeth Prince joined the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo in January 2023. Her research interests lie at the interface of soft matter, polymer chemistry, biomimetic materials, and sustainability.
Elisabeth started her education at the University of Toronto, where she received her undergraduate degree in Biological Chemistry. In 2021 she received her PhD in Polymer and Materials Chemistry from the University of Toronto under the supervision of Professor Eugenia Kumacheva. During her PhD, she designed nanostructured hydrogels that mimic the architecture and mechanical properties of native biological tissues. In collaboration with the Princess Margaret Cancer Center, she developed new hydrogel matrices for growing patient-derived microtumors, which are an emerging platform for developing personalized cancer therapies. After completing her PhD, she was an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow in Professor Jeremiah Johnson’s synthetic polymer chemistry group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she pivoted her research interests towards addressing the plastic waste crisis. During her postdoc, she developed new chemistry for recycling vinylic plastics and thermosets. Dr. Prince's group at UWaterloo is building on her polymer and materials science expertise to address challenges in sustainability and healthcare. They are developing biomimetic hydrogels for applications in tissue engineering. They are also developing new tools for addressing the global plastic waste crisis. |
Education.
Postdoc: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2021-2022. PhD: Polymer and Materials Chemistry, University of Toronto, 2021 BSc: Biological Chemistry - honours, University of Toronto, 2016 Highlighted Awards. John C. Polanyi Prize in Chemistry - Government of Ontario, 2023. NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship - NSERC, 2021-2022. Governor General's Gold Medal - Government of Canada, 2022. Chair's Doctoral Medal - University of Toronto, 2022. |
