I invite you to join me for our next online seminar, “How Does Diversity Impact Science?,” on Tuesday, May 17, from 1:00–2:30 p.m. ET. Registration is now open, and I urge you to share this event with your colleagues and networks, as it is open to all NIH staff and the broader scientific community.
For this seminar, I will moderate a panel discussion exploring the evidence showing that diverse, inclusive teams enhance creativity, innovation, and productivity in science. Panelists will also share outcomes and lessons learned from their research, such as how to measure the impacts of diversity and potential areas of future study.
Guided by the plan, our activities over the next five years will promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in the biomedical research enterprise by focusing on three related goals:
The following six scholars will participate in the seminar:
- Richard B. Freeman, Ph.D., Herbert Ascherman Professor of Economics, Harvard University
- Jedidah Isler, Ph.D, Principal Assistant Director for STEM Opportunity and Engagement, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
- Jennifer Kuan, Ph.D., Deputy Director of Innovation and Research, California State University, Monterey Bay
- George Santangelo, Ph.D., Director, NIH Office of Portfolio Analysis
- Laurel Smith-Doerr, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Amherst
- Shirley M. Tilghman, Ph.D., President Emerita, Professor of Molecular Biology and Public Affairs, Princeton University
Like our other Scientific Workforce Diversity Seminar Series (SWDSS) events, I expect this one to feature a vibrant discussion and draw a large audience. I encourage attendees from biomedicine and other disciplines, given the relevance of this topic to the entire scientific community. As we will discuss in the seminar, workforce diversity is critical to excellence in science, stimulating pioneering solutions to health challenges and other pressing global issues.
Please register today for this critically important event. It is the final seminar of our 2021–2022 SWDSS season, and I am grateful to everyone who helped make our inaugural seminar series a success. Attendance at these events has exceeded our expectations and offered us a great opportunity to stimulate discussion around the latest research on scientific workforce diversity topics.
I look forward to resuming the SWDSS in September 2022 with a new set of events that will run through May 2023. Plan now to join us for our September seminar, “How Does Diversity Affect Innovation in Pharma?” As a reminder, you can sign up to receive updates about future SWDSS offerings.