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MESSAGE FROM EMBO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
However, the EMBO community extends beyond our members. The EMBO Young Investigators and postdoctoral Fellows form additional communities interacting by annual networking events such as the EMBO Fellows Meeting and new web-based media like EMBOfellowsNet. The success of these programmes is evident by following up the careers of these young talented scientists. Of the 42 new EMBO Members elected in 2007, 10 were former EMBO Young Investigators. And not surprisingly, Jan Löwe, the 2007 winner of the EMBO Gold Medal, is a former EMBO Fellow and Young Investigator who was elected a member in 2004. This past month we welcomed EMBO Members elected in 2006 at the annual EMBO Members Workshop, "Frontiers of Molecular Biology". The excellence and diversity of science presented could not fail to impress and encourage interactions amongst the members present. Please see the complete list of newly elected members and associate members. Many EMBO achievements we owe to my predecessor Frank Gannon, who served as Executive Director for more than 13 years. Frank's vision has made the EMBO that we know today - an organization that is consistent with both the original mission of EMBO founders and the needs of its emerging membership within the current European research environment. Indeed, Frank's influence was crucial in the creation of the European Research Council, which we all hope will decisively improve today's research environment in Europe. The EMBO community is actively engaged in bringing about necessary changes in the European science environment. One of the initiatives taking shape aims at extending the awareness of EMBO and its goals to other scientific communities. In October, EMBO Council endorsed the joint proposal of the European Life Sciences Organisation (ELSO) and EMBO management to incorporate ELSO into EMBO. Traditionally, each year, ELSO holds a scientific meeting that has become a hallmark in the life sciences in Europe. The community of graduate and PhD students is well addressed at these meetings where they are actively involved in presentation of their own research at the renowned poster session. EMBO and ELSO will work together to continue the tradition of success at the 2008 ELSO meeting to be held in Nice from 30 August to 2 September. Beginning in 2009, an annual scientific meeting is planned - The EMBO Annual Meeting, staged to become the European life science meeting. The fusion of ELSO with EMBO offers EMBO a forum to reach many more audiences within the European life science community. Participating graduate and PhD students will be exposed to EMBO activities earlier in their careers. The meeting also will provide an opportunity to advance the EMBO Science & Society programme and to raise the visibility of relevant issues to an appropriate policy decision-making level. We encourage you to strongly support this effort as the programme committee of the inaugural EMBO Annual Meeting, to be held in 2009, seeks speakers for the meeting and as a venue where younger scientists can gain insights into a broader spectrum of scientific endeavours which may stimulate their interest in areas outside their present speciality. Certainly, not least or even last, I welcome the two new member states of the Slovak Republic and Luxembourg to the EMBC, EMBO Council members for 2008 and the new personnel in the EMBO Heidelberg offices. And I would like to express my sincere thanks to all personnel for their dedication and support during this transition period to maintain the EMBO commitment to excellence. Without the oversight of the Council and the diligence of our staff, the vision of EMBO founders would only be words rather than the reality that it is today.
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