Kristin Schneeman joined FasterCures in April 2005 as director of programs, with primary responsibility for its innovation portfolio of projects and activities, focused on best practices in the funding and conduct of medical research and innovative collaborations among players in the research enterprise. Among other initiatives, she directs the TRAIN (The Research Acceleration and Innovation Network) program, which provides a platform for knowledge sharing and relationship building to support the growth of venture philanthropy in medical research. Kristin brings to FasterCures more than 30 years' experience in public policy, politics, academia, and the media. She served for three years as a senior adviser and policy director to a gubernatorial candidate in Massachusetts, as a policy aide to a U.S. Congressman, and for four years as the front-line manager and chief-of-staff for a senior adviser to Vice President Al Gore. At Harvard University she directed research projects on future challenges facing governments, and on complex negotiations in business, politics, and international relations. Kristin began her career as a producer of documentary films, for which she was the recipient of an Emmy Award in 1990.