Message from ASBMR President
Peter Ebeling, AO, FRACP, MBBS, MD
November 11, 2021
Dear Colleagues:
I want to thank my predecessor and dear colleague, Dr. Suzanne Jan De Beur, for serving as ASBMR President during a difficult year and demonstrating strong leadership by executing a successful, synchronous hybrid Annual Meeting. I look forward to continuing to work alongside her as she continues on the ASBMR Executive Committee as Immediate Past-President and leveraging her wealth of experience.
It is an exciting time for me to lead ASBMR as we spring back stronger than before in a post-COVID world, learning from the successful innovations made over the last two years to enhance the ASBMR experience. The pandemic has changed every community and organization and we are no exception. We were forced to adapt and reshape the way we came together not just during the Annual Meeting, but year-round. Out of uncertainty we forged a stronger, broader community.
Our volunteer leadership, committee members and staff have consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to anticipating and responding to change in a smart, intentional and adaptive manner. We have a strong foundation to work from and our efforts to improve access for all, regardless of limitation or personal choices, has proven itself successful and exciting.
I am enthusiastic about the new opportunities before us that will enable us to continue to advance, deepen and broaden access for more people to participate in our Society and community. Over the coming months, I will be sharing more information on these exciting opportunities.
It was wonderful to see so many of you in person in San Diego, California, USA last month. I want to remind you that we are continuing the momentum from last month’s Annual Meeting with the virtual ASBMR Meet-the-Professor Series. Listen in from the comfort of your own home or lab as top experts in the bone field present their latest research!
As the inaugural Editor-in-Chief of JBMR® Plus, I know from personal experience the importance of our publications to ASBMR, both by creating a platform for our members to publish their best work, and as the major source of income for our Society. I am looking forward to working with my successor and the new Editor-in-Chief of JBMR® Plus, Deborah Veis, M.D, Ph.D. and her new editorial team. Next year, we will be holding an international search for the next JBMR® Editor-in-Chief to succeed Roberto Civitelli, M.D., who will be a hard act to follow. The call for nominations for this position will be formally launched in January. Also, stay tuned for very exciting plans to come for evolving the highly regarded Primer on the Metabolic Bone Diseases and Disorders of Mineral Metabolism into a more contemporary and user-friendly format. We are thrilled about the new ideas and innovations being planned for the Society’s publications.
I also look forward to working with Rhonda Prisby, Ph.D., Chair of the ASBMR Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee to ensure ASBMR is an inclusive and welcoming scientific home for everyone. No ASBMR member should feel alone. I highly encourage you to attend a session of the ASBMR Member Spotlight Series, which highlight the research of ASBMR members with a focus on groups underrepresented in biomedical research (i.e., Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders) - in a collaborative setting.
Finally, I have assembled a truly stellar team to plan the 2022 ASBMR Meeting in Austin, TX, USA. Led by Professor Raj Thakker, M.D., FRS from the University of Oxford, it includes Christa Maes, Ph.D. as Basic Science co-Chair, Marc Wein, M.D., Ph.D. as Translational co-Chair and Emily Stein, M.D. as Clinical co-Chair. I am thrilled to announce that Gregg L Semenza, M.D., Ph.D. has accepted our invitation to give the Aurbach lecture at the 2022 Annual Meeting. Dr. Semenza is a pediatrician and geneticist at Johns Hopkins University, who was awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering how the body's cells sense and react to low oxygen levels via the Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) pathway. This significant discovery may lead to treatments for diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Dr. Semenza’s lecture alone will be enough of a reason to attend our ASBMR Meeting in Austin, Texas, USA!
I am excited to be your president and look forward to an amazing year ahead!
Sincerely,
Peter Ebeling, AO, FRACP, MBBS, MD
ASBMR President