Diatoms of North AmericaI am excited to share the highlights of 2023!
Diatom Research
After more than 10 years of service to our society, Eileen Cox is stepping down as Editor-in-Chief of our journal, Diatom Research. The role of reviewing manuscripts and publishing of our journal is vital to our society. Please join me in thanking Eileen for her dedication to maintaining the highest standards of scientific publishing. We welcome Ric Jordan as the new Editor-in-Chief. He will gradually transition into the role.
International Diatom Symposium
The pandemic and its aftermath delayed our International Diatom Symposia (IDS). Finally in August 2023, we were able to meet in person in Yamagata, Japan. The persistence of Ric Jordan, Shinya Sata, and the local team resulted in a successful and productive meeting.
Our society provided a total of £ 5,983 (€ 6,940) for travel expenses for 8 students attending IDS. Andrea Burfeid organized a well-attended Early Career Researcher (ECR) networking event, with our support for dinner (£ 766, € 973) and prizes. Excellent student presentations and posters were recognized at the symposium and are featured on our website.
Early Career Grant Awards
Congratulations to the first recipients of the Luc Ector Busary! Each of the following three students received £ 2,000 (€ 2,300) to pursue their research plans. This year, another round of proposals are due 1 August.
Kazuki Sugawara, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Japan
Host specificity in diatoms – a case study of the marine epiphytic diatom Falcula rectangularis
Oktiyas Lufthfi, University of Szczecin, Poland
Biodiversity of coral reef diatoms from Java and Bawean Island, Indonesia based on morphology approach
Deevena Elias, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, India
Evaluation of health and management of Renuka wetland: A RAMSAR site Himachal Pradesh
Working Groups
Participate in ISDR and stay in touch with our society through our working groups.
Aims Chaired by Rosa Trobajo, the Aims Committee works to raise the profile of ISDR as a dynamic, supportive scientific society with benefits for all members.
Governance. Martyn Kelly (chair) works to keep the ISDR constitution and associated documentation in line with United Kingdom law and promote high standards of behaviour amongst members and officers.
Web. The Web Committee (chair open) works to create content and maintain the ISDR website (isdr.org).
Future International Diatom Symposia. Jonathan Taylor chairs the committee to establish guidelines for best practices, special sessions, and activities at upcoming IDS meetings.
Diatom Collections. Bart Van de Vijver chairs the committee to identify common problems and identify opportunities for safeguarding and supporting collections.
Activities
Young ISDR. Andrea Burfeid and Kálmán Tapolczai are not only members of Council, they coordinate activities of Young ISDR. We are proud of our active Young ISDR group for providing a fun and supportive environment for graduate students and recent post graduates. The group manages the Diatom of the Month posts, upcoming meetings, opportunities, social media posts and more.
Diatom Winter Solstice Parties. Events were held at two times to facilitate members and friends from Eastern and Western Hemispheres to join our social gathering.
Silica Sessions. David Williams initiated an online discussion series based on the theme, A Series of Short Talks on Certain Subjects. This online series is intended to be an opportunity for our international community to hold discussions to “question the orthodoxy” on any manner of topics.
Additional Student Support. In 2024, our society is providing £ 3,000 (€ 3,452) to lower the registration fee for students presenting at the European Diatom Meeting in Lake Ohrid, Macedonia.
Best wishes for a Happy New Year!
Regards,
Sarah Spaulding, President
