Wet-lab microbiology, microbial systems, bioreactor engineering

Volunteer Position – Sustainability Startup

Needed: Hardware developers & microbiology experts for a food wastewater treatment startup
Start-up: Neuston Biosystems Inc.
Location: This position is on-site at Neuston's garage-style wet lab in Toronto (accessible by transit). Remote work is limited due to the hands-on nature of the role.

The Opportunity: Develop an Innovative Wastewater Solution for Ontario’s Cheesemakers

Neuston Biosystems an early, pre-seed stage cleantech and agtech hardware startup in the Food & Beverage sector. We're developing a biological wastewater treatment system for food processing waste streams (particularly cheese whey), by remediating pollutants and transforming them into microalgal biomass products for agricultural use (e.g., biofertilizers). This decentralized, scalable technology will reduce waste management costs and support operational sustainability for food producers, while enabling their participation in circular agri-food bioeconomies.

The Volunteer role will support bench-scale prototype development, microbial system performance analysis, and data-driven bioprocess optimization. The position combines wet-lab microbiology, bioreactor engineering, and computational data analysis to drive iterative improvements toward a minimum viable product (MVP). The volunteer will work directly with our founders – a bioreactor engineer and a business executive – in a scrappy, dynamic, flat, collaborative organizational structure to drive early-stage research and technology development.

Why It Matters

• Environmental Impact: Keeping polluted waste streams out of waterways and sewers.
• Sustainability Impact: Unlocking new uses for dairy waste and promoting water reuse.
• Support for Local Businesses: Helping cheesemakers ditch expensive and intermittent waste disposal solutions and turn their waste into something reliably valuable without breaking the bank.
• Industry Impact: Staying ahead of regulations and waste management challenges while promoting the circular agri-food economy.

Qualifications & Experience:

• Minimum Bachelor's degree in a STEM field and experience working in a wet-lab (chemistry, biology, etc)
• Ideally direct experience in microbial cultivation and techniques
• CAD and 3D printed hardware design and fabrication experience is an asset.
• Being a self-starter, inquisitive, organized, and mechanically inclined. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Design, assemble, and iterate on custom photobioreactors and microbial test systems using CAD software and 3D printing tools, supporting scalable designs for real-world deployment.
• Use digitally logged workflows in Google Workspace to manage and monitor long-term cultivation of algae and bacterial consortia across all treatment phases: transitioning sterile lab culture to artificial and real wastewaters, reactor startup/biofilm formation, treatment in fluctuating waste loads, and biomass harvesting.
• Execute wet-lab experiments using microbiological and biochemical techniques such as gram staining, qPCR, gene sequencing, ash-free dry weight measurement, and microscopy. Maintain detailed digital records of protocols, metadata, and results.
• Analyze large optical imaging and qPCR datasets (Big Data) using ImageJ, Python, and R to evaluate biofilm growth dynamics, colonization patterns, and system performance over time.
• Conduct bioinformatics analysis of sequencing results (e.g., with MEGA or Geneious) to assess microbial communities, functional gene dynamics, and potential synergistic metabolic interactions. 
• Perform statistical analysis of the influence of operational controls (e.g. temperature, humidity, flow rate, hydraulic retention time) on key reactor performance metrics (e.g., nutrient removal efficiency, biomass yield, pH trends). Develop a lumped-element digital model of the system behaviour.
• Collaborate on prototype development by integrating bioanalytical feedback into hardware and process optimization, contributing to a functional, scalable MVP suitable for pre-commercial validation trials with Ontario food producers.

Time Commitment

• Between 3 and 10 hours per week, but flexible and to be negotiated. The worksite is accessible 9am-5pm Mon-Fri starting in September 2025.

Interested?

Send us an application or message at: scott.p@neustonbiosystems.com

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