When I took over from Steve Van Dien as President of SIMB in August of 2019, we had just completed a fantastically successfully meeting in Washington, D.C, capping off a great year for SIMB under his direction. In the fall of 2019, we had one of the most successful RAFT meetings ever. Attendance was the best it’s ever been and the scientific program was outstanding. The same was true of the Natural Products meeting held in January 2020. I presided at both meetings, met with the organizing committees and made plans for RAFT in 2021 and Natural Products in 2022. 2019 was a banner year for SIMB both scientifically and financially.
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SIMB has announced the winners of the SIMB Awards for 2020. Awardees will be recognized at the 2021 SIMB Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas, August 8-11.

Charles Thom Award – Nancy Keller, University of Wisconsin-Madison
University of Wisconsin Announcement

Charles Porter Award – Debbie Yaver, Novozymes

Waksman Outstanding Teaching Award – Rajesh Sani, South Dakota School of Mines

SIMB Fellows (2) – Jonathan Mielenz, White Cliff Biosystems and Krishna Madduri, Corteva

SIMB Young Investigator Award – Kang Zhou, National University of Singapore

Read more about the SIMB Awards

Published in Gainesville Sun from Jul. 4 to Jul. 5, 2020.

Dr. Lonnie O’Neal Ingram, who pioneered genetic engineering of bacteria for production of fuels and chemicals from inedible plant materials, passed away on June 25, 2020 at the age of 72 in Charleston, South Carolina. Dr. Ingram served as a Professor of microbiology at the University of Florida’s Microbiology and Cell Science Department (part of the Institute for Florida Agricultural Sciences) in Gainesville, Florida from 1972 through 2017, retiring as a Distinguished Professor. His scientific accomplishments were recognized by his induction into the National Academy of Sciences (2001), the American Society for Microbiology and the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m writing to let you know that the SIMB Board of Directors has voted to cancel the Annual Meeting scheduled in August in San Francisco. The decision was made based on predicted infection rates for COVID-19 over the summer and the uncertainty of the safety of air travel for the foreseeable future. As we work to continue to deliver our mission, we have had one priority firmly at the forefront: maintaining the health, safety, and wellbeing of our community.
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First, let me take a moment – as we all struggle in these uncertain times – to wish everyone good health. I hope you and your loved ones are well and taking precautions to stay that way. One of the few upsides of this crisis is the remarkable ways in which people have come together to help each other deal, not only with illness, but in adapting to dramatic differences in our daily routines. Over the last few months, I have witnessed countless examples of altruism, compassion, resilience, and determination on the part of members of my own community and our larger scientific community, revealing the best in us.
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