ecm forum summer conference 2021 – a view from twitter
posted on october 6, 2021 by kimberley ndungu
on 28–29 september 2021, the early career microbiologists’ (ecm) forum hosted its flagship summer conference dedicated to showcasing early career research, career development and networking. here, we look back on the two-day online event with a view from twitter.
with two scientific sessions covering a variety of topics to look forward to, we were excited to welcome both delegates and speakers to the first day of the conference.
very excited to spend the next two days being inspired at the #ecmconf21 with @microbiosoc
— emily 🧬🧫 (@emilyr_watts) september 28, 2021
🤓bring on the science!🤩
can't wait for an exciting two days! if you are attending, do consider coming to my talk at 2pm today...
— lisa lamberte (@lisalamberte) september 28, 2021
...or better yet come to all the talks and flash presentations by all the early career microbiologists! #ecmconf21 #ecmforum https://t.co/sjvrp6nftt
really exciting to be speaking at my first @microbiosoc ecm event this afternoon. i'm the last speaker of the day so please hang around for my talk on #klebsiella and #phage! #ecmconf21
— claire elek 💙 (@clarika84) september 28, 2021
the first session of the day, translating microbiology, was kicked off by keynote speaker, matt hutchings, who shared his career journey…
first up at #ecmconf21 is @matthutchings10. career decisions made around rock n roll- i stayed in norwich because i didn't want to leave the band! pic.twitter.com/jairccf6gx
— dr justine rudkin (@scousemicrobe) september 28, 2021
…whilst also reflecting on the challenges early career researchers have faced over the past couple of years.
also really appreciate the note that not every postdoc wants to eventually run their own group. important to highlight!! @matthutchings10 #ecmconf21
— rebecca j hall (@drrebeccajhall) september 28, 2021
next, jamie mcgowan continued the session sharing his research with a talk focused on the diversity of eukaryotes.
the diversity of eukaryotes is astounding, and i always forget about it! thanks @_jamiemcgowan for reminding me of these understudied branches of life #ecmconf21 pic.twitter.com/8rd5fnqo9y
— dr justine rudkin (@scousemicrobe) september 28, 2021
diversity was also the theme on twitter when discussing the range of talks that followed in the translating microbiology session.
really enjoyed presenting at #ecmconf21. the talks so far have been incredibly interesting with such a friendly audience. i am loving the diversity of the talks and i look forward to the rest of the comference! @microbiosoc
— bhavik barochia 👨🏽🔬 (@b_barochia) september 28, 2021
great to see such a diverse range of talks given by early career microbiologists today at #ecmconf21, very interesting stuff! i enjoyed the opportunity to present my research too! 🦠🔬🧫👩🏻🔬
— hayley (@haylzpea) september 28, 2021
to conclude the session, liam reynolds highlighted that though harmful, wastewater has real potential to be very helpful.
amazing to hear about the national wastewater surveillance program to monitor sars-cov-2 in asymptomatic patients. hugely correlative data which definitely should be a priority for future monitoring of geographical infection contagion #ecmconf21
— bhavik barochia 👨🏽🔬 (@b_barochia) september 28, 2021
liam reynolds’ project was also a perfect example of how early career researchers have had to adapt to the pandemic.
liam reynolds talking about using wastewater as a surveillance for fecal contamination and amr genes in dublin bay. project rerouted to study sars-cov-2- the pandemic providing research opportunities for some ecrs 💪🏼 #ecmconf21
— dr justine rudkin (@scousemicrobe) september 28, 2021
with day one off to a great start and the translating microbiology session done, it was time to get ready for the next session…
really enjoying the 'translating microbiology' talks at #ecmconf21 this morning - outside of my comfort zone but so interesting! #ecmforum
— rebecca j hall (@drrebeccajhall) september 28, 2021
enjoying all the brilliant talks at #ecmconf21 . well done all the speakers and organisers
— linda oyama (@lindaoyama) september 28, 2021
… right after the lunch break!
conference lunches at home are tasty 🤤 although come free wine time, i may be missing the in situ events #ecmconf21 pic.twitter.com/zmzjheqtoc
— dr justine rudkin (@scousemicrobe) september 28, 2021
first up in the harnessing microbiology session was lisa lamberte, with her anticipated talk focusing on antimicrobial resistance genes and the gut microbiome.
so much cool science today! excited for @lisalamberte #ecmconf21 talk at 2pm this afternoon, definitely recommend for all amr/microbiome folks! #ecmforum
— rebecca j hall (@drrebeccajhall) september 28, 2021
it's been an absolute pleasure, thank you at @microbiosoc and to @winni_l08 for inviting me! #ecmconf21 https://t.co/zbws0zlawb
— lisa lamberte (@lisalamberte) september 28, 2021
later in the session, danielle pierce presented her talk titled, ‘control of hepatitis e virus polyprotein processing by cellular proteases’
really enjoyed presenting my work at the #ecmconf21 today! good to see the talks from other early career microbiologists too 👩🏽🔬
— dani pierce (@danipierce17) september 28, 2021
and the final talk of the day came from claire elek, who shared her research exploring how a virus might save your life.
really exciting to be speaking at my first @microbiosoc ecm event this afternoon. i'm the last speaker of the day so please hang around for my talk on #klebsiella and #phage! #ecmconf21
— claire elek 💙 (@clarika84) september 28, 2021
fantastic talk from @clarika84 discussing how bacteriophages could save our lives! some really interesting work surrounding klebsiella spp. i loved those figures!
— bhavik barochia 👨🏽🔬 (@b_barochia) september 28, 2021
#ecmconf21
after a series of great talks from early career researchers featuring a variety of topics, it was time for day one to come to an end.
great talks today by ecm. looking forward to tomorrow's session! https://t.co/3jyy2yd8cq
— mimi asogwa (@asogwamimi) september 28, 2021
we welcomed delegates back for the second day of the summer conference and many were excited for the upcoming sessions, careers focus and finding funding.
#ecmconf21 starts at 10am today, with talks from scientists at pepsico and cancer trial ireland followed by a session on finding funding. make sure you tune in! #ecmforum @microbiosoc @winni_l08 @fads86 @sligomicrobe
— rebecca j hall (@drrebeccajhall) september 29, 2021
really looking forward to today's session at #ecmconf21 @microbiosoc #ecmforum #careers #careersinscience https://t.co/ozvpj8xviz
— conor feehily (@sligomicrobe) september 29, 2021
to kick off the careers focus session, kevin egan provided an insight into careers in industry…
great talk from kevin egan! the transition from phd to r &d manager position is indeed possible!#ecmconf21 @microbiosoc pic.twitter.com/y0hanxsslt
— mimi asogwa (@asogwamimi) september 29, 2021
...followed by hannah mccarthy who focused on clinical careers…
great talk on clinical trials as a career by hannah mccarthy, from bench to bedside research. @microbesoc #ecmconf21. pic.twitter.com/kemch0z7l7
— mimi asogwa (@asogwamimi) september 29, 2021
… both receiving a great response from delegates!
such a great morning of careers talks on jobs outside of academia! very much looking forward to hearing @prokaryota and @clairewoodall speak about funding now #ecmconf21
— bhavik barochia 👨🏽🔬 (@b_barochia) september 29, 2021
a really great morning session today so far! great engagement from the ecms with questions for our speakers! join us again at 11:15 where @prokaryota and @clairewoodall talk about their funding stories! #ecmconf21 https://t.co/jpogpgf0sx
— 🦠winnie lee🦠 (@winni_l08) september 29, 2021
finally, in the last session of the summer conference, finding funding, both elisa granato and dr claire woodall shared their funding stories, which featured some unexpected guests…
a very important message:@prokaryota's talk on her funding story at @microbiosoc #ecmconf21 is being told by her cats!!! 😻😻 more talks like this please!
— claire elek 💙 (@clarika84) september 29, 2021
some great advice from @prokaryota on applying for fellowships - love the cat photos too! #ecmconf21 #ecmforum
— rebecca j hall (@drrebeccajhall) september 29, 2021
before the conference came to an end, there was an opportunity for delegates and speakers to network. it was great to see ecms had a positive conference experience…
networking has always been one of the biggest things i dread, but @microbiosoc has always provided a nice and friendly atmosphere for anyone to be themselves. thank you to @sligomicrobe @winni_l08 for hosting, as well as for organising this fantastic conference! #ecmconf21
— lisa lamberte (@lisalamberte) september 29, 2021
thank you to all delegates, speakers and those who helped organise the successful ecm forum summer conference; we hope you all enjoyed the event!
i had fun chairing sessions with @sligomicrobe! it's been a great 2 days! thank you to all the speakers for their amazing talks and the ecms for engaging with questions!🤗 https://t.co/ap5qmx9km3
— 🦠winnie lee🦠 (@winni_l08) september 29, 2021
thank you to everyone who attended and presented at the #ecmconf21. you all made it a fantastic event. please check your emails and fill out the feedback survey so @microbiosoc can hear your thoughts. https://t.co/5vvtgdgq5s
— conor feehily (@sligomicrobe) september 29, 2021
