Community

PANEL: The Role of Scientific Publishing in Supporting D&I Discussions about publishing are nearly ubiquitous in any scientific scholarship journey. This important activity impacts how research is reviewed and valued, and can affect if and how this research is built upon. In this panel, moderated by Laura Paglione, Partner at Spherical Cow Group, featuring Marcus Lambert, Associate Vice President for Research Strategy & Operations and Associate Professor in the School of Public Health at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, and Caeul Lim, Scientific Editor/Inclusion & Diversity Officer, Cell Press, we will explore the role of scientific publishing in supporting D&I and its incorporation into research’s collective goals to build knowledge, progress, and societal benefit.

Who do we include in the planning of how we use genomic data to improve human health? Last week I participated in and gave a keynote address at the 8th plenary meetings for the Global Alliance for Genomics & Health (GA4GH). GA4GH plays a critical role in enabling responsible genomic data sharing within a human rights framework. This work includes framing policy and setting standards that meet the real-world needs of the international genomics community.

Genomics data offers enormous hope of tackling our world’s toughest health challenges. But we can’t successfully carry out our critical work of defining technical and ethical standards for genomics data without first building a diverse “intentional community” committed to inclusivity. At the GA4GH 8th Plenary I was invited to give a keynote talk about this topic. listen time: 30 min. KEYNOTE: GA4GH 8th Plenary Building an Intentional Community for Standards Development

“People don’t feel connected to your community because they joined a big crowd in an arena. They feel connected because of the individual conversations, private moments, and vulnerability that they experience with other participants.” - Charles Vogl Unconferences build community through specific characteristics: its collaborative conference agenda creation, “vote with your feet” model of participation, and dynamic pace. These components are difficult to recreate in a virtual setting.

When you have a hammer, every problem looks like a nail… until you get a paintbrush. Every so often you get the gift of being able to see the world through a new lens. In my adult life, there are several distinct times when I was acutely aware of picking up a new tool, shifting to a new lens. Engineering: The object lens The first was when I was an undergraduate studying engineering.

Broad diversity in the community that makes standards and policies ensures that the standards will work for all that we seek to include. Yes, gender and race diversity, but also region, industry, background, viewpoint, and approach. And when we’re talking about standards for genomics data sharing, that diversity is essential for inclusion of information that can benefit the entirety of human-kind. It was so much fun to be interviewed for the the OmicsXchange podcast this month in my role as the chair of the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion group.

Can a party restore our connectedness? There is a colleague that I work with that I have the good fortune of talking with regularly. But the change in him since lockdowns, closings, stay at home orders and protests is notable. He doesn’t dispute the necessity of these things, but it is clear that they are taking a toll on him. Being part of an international community, most of the people I work with on a daily basis rely on online communications as our primary way of getting things done.