Who Are We?
The ISD is a non-profit professional society dedicated to advancement of the field of cell and developmental biology. Founded as a result of the First International Conference on Differentiation held in Nice in 1971, the ISD seeks to provide an international forum for communication of research in three key areas – cancer, morphogenesis and stem cells – through international meetings and through the journal,
Differentiation.
Why Should I Join ISD?
By joining the ISD you become part of an energetic and dedicated community of international researchers that is working for the advancement of the field of cancer, morphogenesis and stem cells. Membership in the ISD provides a free on-line subscription to
Differentiation., free color pages to authors submitting manuscripts to
Differentiation., reduced registration fees to international meetings held every two years, personal contacts in the field, research links, career openings, and support for students attending the ISD Conference and targeted local satellite meetings.
President's Update, May 2024
The ISD year to date has been pleasantly eventful and now is a great time to share some of the highlights.
In March 2024, the ISD had the great pleasure of joining the Latin American Developmental Biology Conference in Valparaiso, Chile. The conference organised by Miguel Concha, Sylvain Marcellini, Veronica Palma and Marcela Torrejon was a tremendous celebration of all that is Developmental Biology. The ISD provided travel grants to 84 students and post-docs, and sponsored the attendance of ISD awardees who gave plenary lectures- Roberto Mayor (UK) received the Jean Brachet Award and Elvan Böke (Spain) received the Anne McLaren Award for Outstanding Women in Developmental Biology.
At the ISD’s biennial meeting, some of the ISD Directors are replenished and so in Valparaiso, I had the great pleasure of becoming President of the ISD (first Australian). At this time, Past President Elizabeth Robertson (UK) and Secretary/Treasurer Mark Lewandoski (USA) left the ISD Board after six years of dedicated service. Together they steered the ISD through unchartered waters- the pandemic- and for this alone we are truly grateful. They also enabled a fabulous meeting in Malta (2022) teaming up with the British Society of Developmental Biology. Thank you, Liz and Mark!
The ISD Executive now has Richard Behringer as Past-President (USA), and I am delighted to share with you that the President-Elect is Anna-Katerina (Kat) Hadjantonakis (USA), and the Secretary/Treasurer is Kathleen (Kate) Whitlock (Chile). I am delighted to be working alongside such talented scientists and advocates.
I wish to thank Richard Behringer on behalf of all ISD members for his remarkable achievements as ISD President and specifically for revitalising the Society’s journal, Differentiation. The Editors-in-Chief, Loydie Jerome-Majewska (Canada), Crystal Rogers (USA) and Rosa Uribe (USA) have assembled an Editorial Advisory Board of some 50 biologists from 12 countries. Early success sees 2023 with double the number of published articles than in recent preceding years. Congratulation to the editorial team of Differentiation!
The ISD plans to increase its support of early career researchers through travel grants, awards, and by partnering with conferences across the globe. To do this we are planning on the increasing success of our journal, Differentiation. So please when you are seeking to publish your research, place Differentiation at the top of your list.
So, the message for 2024 and beyond is that the ISD is working to increase its global reach and impact. This really is an all of Society effort, and so I ask all members to work with us to raise the profile and membership of the ISD, to publish in Differentiation, and to benefit from travel grants, conference participation and awards.
Thank you for being a part of the International Society of Differentiation.
Sally Dunwoodie
ISD President
