International Institute for Collaborative Cell Biology and Biochemistry—History and Memoirs from an International Network for Biological Sciences

Abstract

I was invited to write this essay on the occasion of my selection as the recipient of the 2012 Bruce Alberts Award for Excellence in Science Education from the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB). Receiving this award is an enormous honor. When I read the email announcement for the first time, it was more than a surprise to me, it was unbelievable. I joined ASCB in 1996, when I presented a poster and received a travel award. Since then, I have attended almost every ASCB meeting. I will try to use this essay to share with readers one of the best experiences in my life. Because this is an essay, I take the liberty of mixing some of my thoughts with data in a way that it not usual in scientific writing. I hope that this sacrifice of the format will achieve the goal of conveying what I have learned over the past 20 yr, during which time a group of colleagues and friends created a nexus of knowledge and wisdom. We have worked together to build a network capable of sharing and inspiring science all over the world.

Scientific Societies Fostering Inclusive Scientific Environments through Travel Awards: Current Practices and Recommendations

“…Some published metrics have provided insight into both the successes and shortcomings of travel award programming in promoting inclusive membership and professional development. While, in some cohorts, less than 10% of travel awardees maintained membership in the scientific societies that provided them with awards ( Le Duc and DeAcetis, 2011 ), other accounts have identified prominent and well-represented (WR) and URM scientists/educators who first became involved with their preferred scientific societies through travel awards and sustained that engagement throughout their professional careers ( Edwards, 2004 ; Cameron, 2013 ). More detailed insight into the factors underlying both the benefits and the limitations of existing travel award programming among science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) societies has been unavailable, in part because committees from different scientific societies have generally designed and implemented travel awards independently of one another.…”