Yadvinder (Yad) Bhuller, PhD

As a dedicated advocate for the 3Rs, systems thinking, and new approach methodologies (NAMs), Dr Yadvinder (Yad) Bhuller continues to create and share evidence-informed content through various knowledge transfer initiatives. He has successfully led diverse teams responsible for developing NAM-related technical guidelines and recently delivered a mini-course, ‘Building Knowledge of NAMs through Risk Science’, for high-school students.

Since joining Health Canada in 2002, Yad has also led several national and international science-policy and regulatory initiatives. This includes advancing next-generation risk decision-making (NGRDM) for Canadian regulatory practitioners, an initiative that builds on his doctoral research activities focused on the evolution, risk and ethical principles, and key considerations for NGRDM. Throughout his academic and professional career, he has been a strong advocate for advancing science and technology, contributing to the development of data that are fit for regulatory purposes. Further, through his various activities, he continues to foster ethical spaces that advance the discourse and application of the 3Rs, NAMs and NGRDM.

Nisha Patel, PhD

Dr Nisha Patel is a Science Policy Advisor for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). She obtained her PhD in 2014 from the University of Manchester and went on to hold postdoctoral positions in academia and the NHS, working on a range of projects spanning cell biology, genetics and neuroscience. She moved into the medical communications field in 2022 to support pharmaceutical companies and disease charities to raise awareness of disease, empower patients, recruit for clinical trials and expand collaborative networks. She joined PETA in 2025 and now works to phase out animal testing in research and accelerate the implementation of non-animal methods.

Clare Stanford, DPhil

Clare graduated in physiology at UCL, where she is now Professor (Emerita) of Translational Neuropharmacology. She studied for a DPhil in the Department of Physiology, Oxford, and was later awarded a (University of Oxford) Mary Goodger Scholarship to continue her postdoctoral research. This was followed by a faculty position, as a Departmental Demonstrator, during which time she became the first woman Fellow at Exeter College, Oxford.

She moved to UCL for a tenured post where she continued her research of how monoamine neurotransmitters influence mood and behaviour. This work has involved both human, preclinical and in vitro studies and has led to over 100 peer-reviewed publications on the role of the monoamine neurotransmitters in the stress response, depression, anxiety, obesity and their treatments.

Clare is an Honorary Fellow of the British Pharmacological Society, a Fellow of the Royal Society for Biology and Past President of both the Laboratory Animal Science Association (LASA) and the British Association for Psychopharmacology. She has also served two terms as a member of Council of the University of London and, from 2016 to 2023, was a member of the Animals in Science Committee, which advises the Home Office Minister on matters relating to the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act (1986). She has also served as Chairwoman of the Animal Science Group (Royal Society of Biology) and as a Senior Editor of the British Journal of Pharmacology.

Clare is currently Chairwoman of both the Project Management Board for the prize-winning NC3Rs Experimental Design Assistant and the Transparency and Reproducibility Committee, which is a section of the International Union of (Basic and Preclinical) Pharmacology. She is also a member of the council of LASA, and an Editor of several journals in addition to ATLA, including the Journal of Psychopharmacology and the European Journal of Pharmacology.