> Interview With Prof. Charlie Bryce, Vice President of EFB

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Interview With Prof. Charlie Bryce, Vice President of EFB

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“One of the key benefits of EFB membership is the networking effectiveness”

20/11/2005

-What is the EFB and what is its mission?
-"EFB is exactly what it says it is - it is a federation or union of European biotechnologists united to provide added value to their own work and area of expertise. This is achieved just as much through interactions with other members in the same or allied disciplines as with members from disparate areas within biotechnology. The infrastructure based on subject specific disciplines (Sections and Associate Sections) and more broad-ranging activities (Task Groups) lends itself well to encouraging these valuable interactions. Not only is there a matrix type structure in terms of topics but also in terms of membership which covers individuals, large and small industrial companies, university departments and professional bodies. The mission of the European Federation of Biotechnology must be to strengthen and enhance these interactions with a focus not only on central Europe but more globally through formal collaborative ventures, courses, conferences, reports and publications.”

-What are the reasons that led you to undertake the position as Vice President of the EFB in 2004?
-"My first formal association with EFB was in 1989 when I joined the then Working Party on Education (later to be renamed the Task Group on Education & Mobility). The following year I was elected as Chairman of the Group and held this role for three years, following which I remained as a member. I joined the Task Group on Public Perception of Biotechnology in 1991 and have been a member to this date. In 1998 I was elected to a second term as Chairman of the Task Group on Education & Mobility, a role which I maintain to the present day. The latter role resulted in my serving on the Executive Committee and as a result I became more involved in the wider and more strategic issues concerning the Federation. In 2002 I was invited to act as Chairman and help to launch a new Task Group on Innovation until such times as a permanent Chairman was appointed. This took place with the appointment of Bo Heiden in 2004.
More recently I was actively involved with others in reviewing the financial status of the Federation, reviewing the Statutes, the election of the Secretary General, and the selection of the European Central Office. Thus, it was a combination of a long association with the Federation, an increasing involvement in a range of EFB related activities that caused me to be proposed and elected as a Vice President in 2004.”

-Besides your role as Vice President, you are also Chairman of the EFB Task Group on Education & Mobility since 1998. What are the main goals of the Task Group and what activities or initiatives are planned?
-"The EFB Task Group on Education and Mobility is composed of a network of scientists committed to higher education from a whole range of biotechnology-related scientific and technological disciplines and representing all EU member states. Its main aim is to promote higher level education and training in biotechnology through various internal and external networking activities. The Task Group has arranged various courses and workshops and also played a key role in developing a variety of European biotechnology education initiatives. This has included the Code of Conduct for Biotechnologists, the European Doctorate in Biotechnology and Professional accreditation for biotechnologists.
Like all other EFB Task Groups the activities undertaken span the different Sections and Task Groups. Thus we operate as a network of individuals with specific and active interest in a diverse range of topics in the area of education and training, manpower needs, curriculum content and mobility of staff and students. The work is undertaken principally through the execution of external funded projects. Collaborative interactions take place with internal networks such as YEBN, EFBIC, the Task Group on Public Perceptions of Biotechnology and the Task Group on Innovation, and with external networks such as EMBO, EuroBio and BioVision.”

-How can EFB members become involved?
-"Existing EFB members and any new members wishing to join EFB should log onto the EFB web site and navigate to the relevant section relating to the Task Group. This will provide them with contact details and a list of current activities and potential new initiatives. The life blood of the Federation is its members and we, like each of the Sections and Task Groups, welcome new members with new and exciting ideas and lots of energy and drive.”

-The most recent workshop organised by the Task Group took place in Denmark during the 12th European Congress on Biotechnology and was focused on Biotechnology Workforce Development. What is being done at the educational level?
-"Many educational establishments have systems in place to gauge the needs of industry. What has become apparent for biotechnology, particularly for those who move into SMEs, is a need for more broad issues to be incorporated into the curriculum… what have been called parascientific subjects. These include topics like bioethics, entrepreneurship, technology transfer, public perception of biotechnology, and social and moral issues relating to the science. Clearly, the art is getting the balance just right in order that the “hard science” is not too diluted out by the inclusion of these broadening topics. A key feature for us as lecturers is to encourage students to learn how to learn rather than try to assimilate a collection of facts. This is important as a basis for life long learning since the concept of a job for life is no longer one that exists in modern life. A quote I often give to new young lecturers is “the art of a good teacher is to uncover parts of the curriculum rather than try to cover all parts of it.
I do also currently hold the position of Secretary General of the European Association for Higher Education in Biotechnology (HEduBT). This is the body which oversees the operation of the Eurodoctorate in Biotechnology scheme. To be awarded the Eurodoctorate the candidate must, in addition to all the requirements for the PhD at his/her own university, have successfully attended a number of credit bearing courses in the broad areas discussed above (bioethics, entrepreneurship etc.), worked for a short period in a laboratory in a European country other than their own, presented the abstract of their thesis in a second European language and have published a part of their doctoral studies in a refereed journal. The scheme is proving popular and the plans are to promote this more widely. It has been agreed that the Association will be a formal part of the Task Group on Education & Mobility and so its promotion within the Federation is a focus for the near future.”

-What kind of networking activities are you planning in the near future?
-"One of the key benefits of EFB membership is the networking effectiveness. For example, in organising a meeting this can lead to a range of new networks which in turn often lead to new collaborative ventures in the future. Thus, arising out of the recent ECB12 meeting in Copenhagen we have established a contact with the Russian Association of Biotechnologists. They are keen to map their activities onto the EFB infrastructure of Sections and Task Groups and are particularly keen to establish a European Focus on Biotechnology with Russia (EFBwRUS) Project. To this end I was invited to act as Co-Convener of their 3rd International Conference to be held in Moscow (25th-27th October 2005) and to present two papers, one on education and one on international collaborative ventures. I am certain, even at this early stage, that this association will flourish in the near future.”

-What is the purpose of EFBwIN (European Focus on Biotechnology with India)?
-"This has been modelled on the very successful EFBIC Project (European Focus on Biotechnology in China) and the interest expressed by the European Commission in collaboration with India, with the aim of establishing collaborative joint ventures with European and Indian partners on a range of specific topics. The project has clear objectives in relation to research, training and innovation.”

-What is your role in this project?
-"The initial work to develop the project started formally with a visit to Delhi by myself and Boerge Diderichsen, the then EFB President, during which a number of meetings with key personnel were arranged. Shortly after our return we met with EC Commissioners to discuss the matter further and to investigate possible funding sources. At this stage I will be acting as the EFB Coordinator for the Project along with my Indian counterpart, Dr B.M. Gandhi (Adviser) of the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India, New Delhi. It has been agreed that a Secretariat would be hosted by the Department of Biotechnology at the Ministry of Science & Technology (DBT) in Delhi and that this proposed arrangement could be signalled formally in the EC grant application.”

-A specific number of priority areas were identified early in the project to address biotechnological issues.
-"It was agreed that the EFBwIN project should be both pan-European and pan-Indian and that a small number of priority topics be identified early in the project planning such that each of these would address an important biotechnological issue and, in addition, have an excellent chance of success in the form of high profile deliverables/outcomes. Two topics areas that were identified as possible priority areas were informatics and bioremediation.”

-How can the EFB help to improve the collaborative work between India and Europe?
-"In designing the Project the matrix structure of EFB was seen as central to the successful prosecution of the venture. Let’s take as an example one of the priority research areas identified by the Indian Government namely, transgenic crops with pest and disease resistance and enhanced nutritional quality. Clearly, this would greatly benefit from collective consideration from members of the following groupings within EFB, the Section on Agri-Biotechnology, the Section on Applied Functional Genomics, the Section on Microbial Physiology, the Task Group on Public Perceptions of Biotechnology, the Task Group on Safety in Biotechnology and the Task Group on Innovation.”

-How can EFB members, in Europe and/or in India, become actively involved in or support EFBwIN?
-"It was agreed that the complete list of all personnel who had already indicated an interest in being actively involved (plus those whom will be added subsequently on the recommendation of Dr Gandhi and Professor Bryce) would form the EFBwIN Forum. Members who are interested in becoming involved should contact me by e-mail to receive a template of information that is required at this stage.
We also agreed that the body overseeing and directing the strategic direction of the project and its deliverables would be a smaller grouping known as the EFBwIN Council consisting of high level biotechnologists covering the major scientific disciplines/sectors, Government and EC representatives, industrialists and possibly NRI representatives.  A number of individuals have been considered, including members drawn from the Standing Advisory Committee-Overseas, but this will be further developed through considered future dialogue between EFB and the Department of Biotechnology at the Ministry of Science & Technology (DBT) in Delhi.”

-In what areas can European biotechnology benefit from scientific or technological inputs from Indian scientists?
-"In a recent interview for an article entitled India Wants to be Your Biotech Source, I was quoted as saying that India has “made remarkable progress in a very short time” and that this is “testimony to the confidence that investors have in the knowledge and skill base that has rapidly developed”. I went on to state: “It is more likely that India will represent a powerful and significant player in global biotechnology in its own right, and in this way, not by outsourcing, it can represent a very real threat to other national players”. Thus, in my view, the EFBwIN Project recognises the potential of both the European and Indian partners and is truly a win-win situation!”

-What message would you like to communicate to all EFB members?
-"We have seen a great deal of change within EFB in the last year: a new European Central Office, new office staff and a new Secretary General, a new Acting President with a new President taking up office in January 2006, new Statutes and a new legal status. What we now need to do collectively is to make these changes work and work well for the Federation. We have many exciting new initiatives that can only flourish if we all work well together - the future is bright!!”

Contact Info:

Anna Alsina
Communications Coordinator
European Federation of Biotechnology
Tel: +34 93 268 7703
Fax: +34 93 268 4500
E-mail: anna@efb-central.org