ECS Weekly: Practicing failure; apply today for the DeLill Nasser Award; what's next for you with GSA?

This week’s newsletter focuses on the importance of being open to learning and growing from our mistakes as we work towards diversity and inclusion, and it was written by Hannah Grunwald of the Equity and Inclusion Committee.

Practicing failure in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging

We all fail sometimes. That’s life.

Nevertheless, it’s easy to get defensive in response to the consequences of failure, particularly when it comes to issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. As our culture changes to protect and support excluded and disadvantaged members of our community, it’s hard to know which words and actions are useful and which are harmful—even when we didn’t intend harm.

So when we do fail, and we do cause harm, it’s easy to feel defensive. You weren’t trying to hurt anyone. You are a moral person. So, your actions couldn’t be harmful or immoral, right?

Defensive feelings are normal, but they aren’t useful. They isolate us, damaging both self and community. Sometimes, we are so afraid to make a mistake that we refuse to act. Sometimes, we are so certain our mistakes aren’t real that we refuse to change our thoughts and behaviors.

As individuals, communities, and organizations, we must find ways to recognize our mistakes and take ownership of the real and lasting harm they can cause. There’s no way to count how many bright, young scientists left our field because they were told in some small, unintentional way that they weren’t wanted, that they didn’t belong. We need to acknowledge our personal roles in systemic oppression, and then, we need to grow and change.

Here’s where we, in experimental fields, hold an incredible advantage. We are practiced at making mistakes. Experimental biology is a decades-long, personal exercise in how to make mistakes and learn from them. If your PCR fails over and over, you brush it off and make new primers. If your gene is embryonic lethal, you try a conditional allele. And when, in ten years, new evidence comes to light that shifts the understanding of your work away from your initial interpretation, you take it in stride. You build on it.

Making a mistake doesn’t make you a bad person, or a bad scientist. Patterns of willful negligence and malpractice in the face of new knowledge, on the other hand…

So, when you feel defensive, try to remember your scientific training. First, trust the data. If someone tells you they were hurt or offended, take that information seriously. Analyze where you went wrong so that you know where to optimize next time. Then, give yourself the grace of the scientist. Breakthroughs will come, as long as you keep growing.

GSA Early Career Leadership Program Resources

NEW! Apply today for the DeLill Nasser Award to help fund your professional development. The DeLill Nasser award supports geneticists in their graduate or postdoctoral career stages by subsidizing participation in conferences and laboratory courses. Apply before the deadline on May 16 to support your professional development.

NEW! While many of you know some of GSA’s most valuable benefits, there’s nothing quite like hearing it from a colleague. Meet Julio Molina Pineda who shares his experience of the benefits of being a GSA member throughout his career.

NEW! Caroline Muirhead of the Communication and Outreach Subcommittee is this week's featured early career scientist. Read about Muirhead's engineering and biotech background and Muirhead's experience as a science educator in this early career leadership spotlight.

Ending soon! Submit your research to the GSA Journals before April 30 for a chance to win one of two grand prizes. The winner will receive a publication fee waiver with GSA and a free year of membership with the Society. Read more about it on Genes to Genomes.

Ending soon! Watch the #TAGC24 conference recordings before they're gone. Scientific sessions and keynotes are available now through the end of April for your viewing in the conference app. If you didn't register before the conference, you can still sign up for a virtual registration to access the recordings.

Meet Sarah Gilmour of the ECLP's Multimedia Subcommittee in this early career leadership spotlight. Read all about Gilmour's research with S. pombe, experience with student journalism, and work with the multimedia communication.

Congratulations to the poster award winners at #TAGC24! You can find more on the winners and their poster research on the blog.

Congratulations to the poster award winners at #Fungal24! Read more about the poster award recipients and their research on Genes to Genomes.

The GSA Journals are calling for papers on the opportunities and challenges for genomic data analyses in biobanks. This series will highlight theoretical, analytical, and computational advances addressing these challenges and leveraging these opportunities. Submissions are due May 31, 2024 to be considered for the launch block of papers.

Research in the February issue of G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics studied the mutation in parrots that turns their plumage yellow. Read more about the study and how future studies might be able to help the endangered natural population.

The 66th Annual Drosophila Conference will take place March 19–23, 2025 in sunny San Diego, California at the Town and Country Resort. More details will follow soon!

Save the date for the 25th International C. elegans Conference which will take place June 2025. More information on exact dates and location will be coming soon!

Postdoctoral Researcher | Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore, MD

Open Rank Faculty | Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, University of Indiana School of Medicine | Indianapolis, IN

Research Geneticist | Genetic Improvement of Fruits and Vegetables Laboratory, USDA Agricultural Research Service | Beltsville, MD

Assistant Professor | Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus | Aurora, CO

Data Manager | The Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, University of Helsinki | Helsinki, Finland

Research Associate | Schroeder Lab, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center | Dallas, TX

Flow Cytometrist | St. Jude Children's Research Hospital | Memphis, TN

Postdoctoral Fellow | Centre for Gene Therapy & Regenerative Medicine, King’s College | London, United Kingdom

Postdoctoral Fellow | Department of Bioengineering, University of Oregon | Eugene, OR

Postdoctoral Fellow | Computational Science Initiative, Brookhaven National Laboratory | Upton, NY

Postdoctoral Fellow | Looney Lab, University of California, San Francisco | San Francisco, CA

PhD Student | Plant Science Research Institute, University of Montreal | Montreal, Canada

Is your lab hiring? GSA members qualify for a discounted rate to post job openings and can post student and postdoc positions at no cost on the GSA Job Board!

NEW! The late abstract submission deadline for the Society for Developmental Biology Meeting in Atlanta, GA is May 1. Only poster submissions are being accepted at this point. Check out their website for more information.

Comparative Developmental Biology is an intensive two-week laboratory course for graduate students in year two of their studies or beyond and post-docs, who seek a broad training in experimental approaches to developmental questions across diverse study organisms. Applications are due June 21, 2024.

Submit your favorite microscopy image you've taken to the FocalPlane-elmi2024 image competition. The last day for entries is May 14, 2024.

Apply today for the Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science. The Vilcek Foundation will award three Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise of $50,000 each to young, immigrant biomedical scientists who demonstrate outstanding early achievement. Applications are open through June 10.

HHMI is accepting applications for the Freeman Hrabowski Scholars Program until May 15. Scholars are appointed to a five-year term, renewable for a second five-year term after a successful progress evaluation. Each Scholar receives up to $8.6 million over the ten-year period, including full salary, benefits, a research budget, and scientific equipment. Apply today!

Current professional development and training opportunities

NEW! MD Anderson Cancer Center is offering a free virtual event to discuss the NIH F32 funding mechanism. The event will take place on May 14 from 2:30–4 p.m. CDT and will discuss what reviewers look for in a successful application.

NEW! The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is offering a virtual information session to learn more about postdoctoral opportunities at the institution. The event is happening on May 13 from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. MDT. Register today!

Join the next NPA SmartSkills workshop on April 23 at 3 p.m. EST to discuss “Promoting Productive Postdoc Conversations: Giving and Receiving Effective Feedback.” Register now through the National Postdoc Association.

Watch the recording of BREWMOR's workshop from February 9 on integrating bioinformatics into the undergraduate classroom.

The Civic Science Fellows have curated a list of available 2024–2025 Civic Science Fellows positions. Check out all the available positions and apply now.

The STEM Careers Coalition has released a set of resources for educators of all ages to help guide young people from early education to STEM careers later in life. Check out the free resources they've made available.

The Royal Society published a recent theme issue on "Sculpting the microbiome: how host factors determine and respond to microbial colonization." The articles reflect on evolutionary principles guiding how hosts interact with their commensal microbiota and offer new techniques and directions for research.

Johns Hopkins University has curated a resource of funding opportunities for postdoctoral researchers. The list includes general and field-specific opportunities and is a great resource for anyone looking for fellowships to apply to this cycle.

ASAPbio is currently accepting applications for funds to help turn your journal club into a preprint review club. Successful applicants will receive funds to provide refreshments at their preprint review club, and groups are expected to post 4 preprint reviews over the year. Applications are processed on a rolling basis.