Dr Risa is an associate professor at Universitas Tanjungpura. She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Universitas Riau, a master’s degree in biochemistry from Institut Teknik Bandung, and a PhD in chemistry from the University of Bristol, UK.

Her proposed research is on “Genomic Mining-Based Natural Products Discovery” at Oregon State University. In addition, her proposed visit to the laboratory of Prof. Taifo Mahmud at Oregon State University is critical for the success of this research. His group has used genome mining, molecular genetics, enzymology, and chemistry to discover novel pharmaceutically active compounds, particularly actinomycetes.