Editor’s note: Joan Siefert Rose is CEO of LaunchBio.

DURHAM – Larger Than Life Science takes over the Chesterfield in downtown Durham Thursday, September 6, with a focus on leadership and the importance of finding great mentors.

National Inventors Hall of Fame member Dr. Fran Ligler, the Lampe Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering at NC State University, will discuss her extraordinary career and talk about the need for more women to patent their technologies and start companies. That message will be brought home by our panel of women working in the life sciences, who will share their experiences in a moderated discussion called “Moving Up with Mentorship.”

Other featured sessions in the September 6 program include the experts at Nuventra Pharma Sciences, describing how to navigate the FDA IND pathway to start human clinical trials.

They’ll be joined by entrepreneurs from Intarcia Therapeutics and Shattuck Labs, who will discuss their real-life journeys to get products to market.

The community partner in September is Duke INSPIRE, with the show The Art of a Scientist, pairing researchers with sculptors, painters and graphic designers.

Come check out what they’ve created together and try your hand at a scientific-themed coloring book – best examples will be displayed for all to see.

Note: LaunchBio is a partner of WRAL TechWire.