A growing community
Celebrating volunteering in the chemistry community at our 2015 General Assembly
Welcoming members of our community from near and far to this year’s General Assembly in Manchester, our president Professor Dominic Tildesley emphasised how our enduring strength is based on the continued efforts of our members. He said: “In February, the Royal Society of Chemistry will be 175 years old. That’s quite a grand old age, but I have to say, we are in great shape because of the commitment of our members.
“We were formed by a group of scientists who volunteered their time for the organisation and we wouldn’t still be here today, if it weren’t for the support of generations of members since. That is why we have chosen volunteering as the theme for this year’s General Assembly, and why, to celebrate our anniversary, we are asking our members around the world to give 175 minutes for chemistry in 2016.”
One of the discussion sessions also focused on the theme of volunteering, canvassing views on how we can support our members to get more involved in our community, to help shape our member engagement and advocacy strategy.
Public attitudes and communicating chemistry
Imran Khan, chief executive of the British Science Association, gave a presentation about broadening the appeal of science to non-scientists. He said: “I’m excited because of the theme you have chosen for this year’s event around volunteering. So much of the work we do is totally focused around volunteering and we couldn’t do what we do without volunteers. We need more volunteers in this space and communicating how fantastically inspiring, challenging and exciting science is if we’re going to make a difference.”
Two of our most active members led a workshop on public attitudes to chemistry. Jamie Gallagher is outreach officer at the University of Glasgow, and Suze Kundu is a teaching fellow at Imperial College. They posed the question: “How can all of us use the findings of the public attitudes to chemistry research in our everyday communications?”
The session also reflected on some of the most surprising results, asking why chemists’ ideas of how the public perceive them differ so much from reality, and looking at how this difference should influence the ways that we talk. Points raised during sessions on this topic included the need to tailor our message to our audience and cultivating our connections to local media.
Jamie explained his reasons for attending the General Assembly, saying: “It’s a great opportunity to meet other people from other local sections, to come together and discuss the problems and solutions people have, and share best practice, and take it back to our own areas and work to do something new”.
Recognising inspirational members
The prize ceremony and dinner took place in the impressive surroundings of Manchester Cathedral, where Dominic Tildesley and our chief executive, Dr Robert Parker, presented many of our annual prizes and awards. For the first time, this year’s ceremony also included the presentations for inspirational members and committees, recognising those whose voluntary efforts have been instrumental in driving and delivering activities that have had a real impact on their communities.
Professor Adrian Dobbs, from the Heterocyclic and Synthesis Group committee was recognised for his inspiring efforts to ensure that conference programmes reflect the full diversity of the community, and his work with colleagues in India to promote international collaborations.
We congratulated Dr Ann Hubbard, from the Downland Local Section committee, who was undeterred when she heard that a Kitchen Cupboard Chemistry project couldn’t be incorporated into local primary school lessons. Instead, she found new ways of bringing chemistry to young people – through the Scout Association – and she has got other local members involved too.
Professor Venkateswarlu Peesapati from Deccan Local Section was recognised for leading the local section in expanding their activities to reach a really wide range of people in the local community – from inspiring school students, to empowering women in the areas of education and health.
Dominic Tildesley noted that while it’s wonderful to be able to recognise the leadership and initiative of individual members we also want to celebrate the great teamwork that goes on in our committees. Our awards for inspirational committees are for those who have initiated new activities or approaches to engage or support their communities.
The Applied Catalysis Group Committee was recognised for its inspiring careers events, which showcase the huge range of interdisciplinary paths in the field, alongside its scientific programme.
We congratulated our Biological and Medicinal Chemistry Sector Committee for the diversity and breadth of their high-impact outreach programme.
Pictured above right are members of our East Midlands Local Section Committee who were recognised for their great commitment to making sure they represent their whole community.
Lastly, our awards for service celebrate the exceptional and long-standing support of some of our most committed members. Each winner has contributed such a great deal to our organisation, and their local communities over the years.
We recognised John Beckett, for his involvement with our East Anglia Local Section for the past decade, Dr William Byers, for his involvement as a member for over 50 years and Professor Robin Perutz, for his involvement as a dedicated member of our Dalton Division Council for 15 years, including as president.
Pictured in the image gallery below is Professor Balasubramanian, recognised for his involvement with the Royal Society of Chemistry for over 25 years. He led the revival of our South India Section when he took over as secretary, and has led an extensive programme of outreach with schools and colleges.
Our congratulations and thanks go to all of these inspirational members of our community.
