"Caroline is an early career principal investigator who specializes in cell signaling in ophthalmology, with a deep passion for unravelling the complex mechanistic perturbations underlying debilitating degenerative retinal diseases such as glaucoma, which ultimately cause vision loss. Apart from being an exceptionally passionate scientist, she is an incredible human being with a big, compassionate heart and a larger-than-life attitude that brings an amazing aura into the lab culture. One of her most astounding qualities that I admire is her courage to advocate for change beyond the traditional mindset to allow us to innovate and change the way we do things in the lab, while never losing sight of what matters the most at the end of the day – the aim to help patients with our findings.

Although Caroline is one of the most hardworking and hence, busy people in the department, her door is always open for her students and colleagues at all times, to provide support whenever and in whatever needed – personal and professional.

We, her students and mentees, are very fortunate and happy to be working in her team as we are assured of not only a successful research career, but also a life-changing experience that motivates us to carry forward her warm legacy.

Caroline certainly deserves the ‘Lab Hero’ accolade to acknowledge all her small efforts and the love that she has been so generously and silently spreading to all who come in contact with her in the scientific community."

Nominated by Alfred Francis Pakkam John Francis, Experimental and Translational Ophthalmology, University Medical Centre of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany