“The rule of law is the backbone of democracy. And if you’re living in a democracy, it’s vital to find out the truth,” says Andro Vos of the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI). At the TEDxHagueAcademySalon he’ll explain how forward-thinking forensics can contribute to a secure society.
As a Programme Director at one of the world’s leading forensic laboratories, Andro Vos led a pioneering programme on crime scene investigation, known as CSI The Hague. The project created a CSI Lab that brings together techniques ranging from augmented reality and serious gaming to thermal and spectral imaging and sensor and measurement technologies.
Going beyond the classic tools of criminal investigation, such as tracing finger prints or human hairs, the programme has developed techniques to digitise an entire crime scene. This allows investigators to go on analysing the scene months or years after the event, or carry out training at a genuine crime scene in virtual reality.
From state-of-the-art premises in The Hague, the NFI provides products and services to clients all over the world. The institute works closely with industry, knowledge institutes and universities, and invests heavily in research and development to lay the foundation for the innovative forensic methods of tomorrow.
Andro Vos came to the Netherlands from Suriname as a child. The most important lesson his childhood experiences taught him: “Dare to dream.” It’s a philosophy that led him to an early career in professional football. Dreams he went on to realise include not only the creation of the CSI Lab in The Hague, but also the foundation of the first forensic training institute in Africa. “If you don’t have a dream,” he says, “you don’t achieve anything.”
The Netherlands Forensic Institute website: www.forensicinstitute.nl
Andro previews his talk - see the video:
