Orianna Min

TeamExecutive Team

Oct. 20

**PROGRAM LIAISON, WATERLOO**
Ideation Clinic
**BASc CANDIDATE IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING**
University of Waterloo
**CO-FOUNDER**
Elpis (PHANES)

Orianna Min is a fourth-year mechanical engineering student at the University of Waterloo. She is passionate about researching and learning, particularly in the areas of biomechanics, biochemistry, thermodynamics, and material science.

Through participating in the 2021 Ideation Challenge, Orianna has come to learn about the needs and struggles in the spinal cord injury community, and started to develop PHANES, a walking and exercising lower-limb exoskeleton, with classmate Daniel. From PHANES, she co-founded the biotechnology venture Elpis, where she fell in love with entrepreneurship, in its power to improve people's lives through realizing her ideas.

Along with entrepreneurship, Ideation Clinic has inspired Orianna to see the value and importance in working with a multi-disciplinary community for translational projects and initiatives. Currently, she also joined the Ideator-In-Training program under Ideation Clinic, to further develop and strengthen her knowledge and experience in this field.

“Go where the ignorance is maximum, because that’s where you discover the goal.”

DR. IOANNIS YANNAS

What does your role at the Ideation Clinic™ entail?

I am the Program Liaison in the Partnership Team, currently in charge of building relationships with connections at McMaster University. The main tasks for relationship building include creating meaningful connections and collaborations, promoting events and programs, and building potential partnerships.

What drew you to the Ideation Clinic™?

Ideation Clinic is the first place where I’ve seen and gained a real-world perspective of how important it is to have a multidisciplinary team, especially in the medical world. It really touched me when team members of unique perspectives, network, and experiences work together to achieve our common goal!