December 2020

Letter From the President

Just nine months ago, we rapidly transitioned Translational Science 2020 to a virtual format. Little did we know that it would be one of the first steps towards revolutionizing how we network, meet, and conference. Since then, we have worked hard to support and advance platforms to bring you virtual meetings and webinars, and we are enhancing our web and social media activities. Now, I am pleased to announce a re-imagined Translational Science meeting for 2021. I am so grateful to Dr. Felicity Enders for agreeing to lead the meeting, and I am delighted that she has chosen Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges as the cross cutting theme. She seems to have already gotten some attention with over 500 abstract and session submissions for the conference. For those who are waiting for more information before signing up, I asked Felicity to pen a short for this column:

Dear colleagues,

I was deeply honored this year when the Board of Directors selected me to lead Translational Science 2021. As was recently announced, our 2021 meeting will be virtual. While the extroverted among us may miss meeting in the lobby area, our Planning Committee has embraced this opportunity to explore new directions for Translational Science within a highly integrated and user-friendly online platform. In preparation for this meeting, I invite you to participate in these challenge activities.

Challenge #1: First, our Planning Committee is building networking opportunities into the virtual platform. As such, one challenge I pose to you as a TS2021 attendee is to take time during the conference to engage with at least one person you don’t already know. That might mean a virtual tea time, sharing thoughts through the chat, and/or exchanging contact information with plans to talk the following week. Alternatively, such a connection might simply arise out of your interactions in a Mock Study Section or a Speed Mentoring discussion.

Challenge #2: Our conference theme of “Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges” will be highlighted through several focal activities on the final day of the meeting. In the team challenge “Overcoming Barriers with Bridges,” you will be asked to partner (form a bridge) with colleagues outside of your institution and field of expertise to devise ways to overcome an existing translational barrier. Each team will work throughout the conference to resolve their challenge and identify a proposed solution. Each team will present their scenario resolution at the session. This activity is intended to create new bridges between investigators and spark new ideas and collaborations that may materialize into lasting connections far beyond the end of the conference. While this activity will be engaging to observe, I challenge you to participate in a team, rather than sit on the sidelines. To sign up, please select this session during registration.

Challenge #3: Another challenge is a similar session that likewise depends on your choice to step outside your comfort zone and try something new – and these sessions are at the same time, so consider carefully which best fits your needs at this point in your career. In “Today’s Trainees, Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs,” individuals involved in the commercialization of University-held Intellectual Property will be invited to pitch their technology to you, and a panel of judges drawn from industry, academia, and the investment community for the opportunity to win cash prizes and in-kind contributions to accelerate the commercialization of their technology. Of note, this session is open to both trainees and others. If you are interested in participating in this session, please sign up during registration. For questions about this session, contact Simeon Abiola at Simeon_Abiola@URMC.Rochester.Edu.

In these challenges, I invite you to do things that are unfamiliar and therefore potentially uncomfortable. In the words of Andrew Cuomo, “You don’t build walls; you build bridges between people.”

Looking forward to talking with you during TS2021!

Felicity T. Enders, PhD, MPH

Chair, Planning Committee, Translational Science 2021

Professor and Head, Section of Clinical Statistics

Mayo Clinic

Christopher John Lindsell, PhD

President ACTS 

Translational Science 2021: Register Today

Translational Science 2021 has gone virtual! Join us March 31 - April 2, 2021 for a full line-up of educational content focused on breaking barriers and building bridges across clinical research and translational science.

Register today to view both live and on-demand education sessions, explore more innovative research than ever before, and claim continuing education credit!

Upcoming Webinar

Join us Tuesday, December 15 at 1:00 pm CST for "Building an Innovation Ecosystem." In this 90 minute webinar, panelists will discuss how to connect like-minded researchers and clinicians to one another, utilize resources, and build educational programs.

Click here to register. ACTS institutional and individual members can attend this live webinar for free. There is a $10 cost for non-member early career investigators, and $15 cost for non-members.

Journal of Clinical and Translational Science

Volume 4 / Issue 6 of the Journal of Clinical and Translational is now available online!

Submit your article today to be featured in future issues of JCTS! Please also visit the JCTS website for information on our themed issue related to Design, Development, Evaluation, and Dissemination of Team Science Interventions in Clinical and Translational Research.

Translational Science Today

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