Thank You

Dear Colleagues,

I have always thought that there was no more special experience than working on noble projects with noble people and this has definitely been the case in my work for our journal, Industrial Biotechnology. For the past six years I have been engaged in an exciting and rewarding collaboration with Co-Editor in Chief, Glenn Nedwin, and Executive Editor, Ellyn Kerr. Like many exciting explorations, you start out on a certain trek based on an understanding of the current landscape, and during the course of your exploration you encounter challenges and obstacles that tend to alter your understanding of the landscape. Having very capable, insightful, committed and resourceful members of the exploration team is essential for the successful negotiation of these challenges and obstacles, and I have been very fortunate to have Glenn and Ellyn as partners in this journey with Industrial Biotechnology.

Unfortunately, like all good things, this partnership is coming to an end. Ellyn has stepped down from her role and is moving on to new landscapes to explore, and Glenn will do the same in the first quarter of 2012. I am very thankful for the purposeful trek that we have pursued in making Industrial Biotechnology a journal that services our community. I will miss the intense and fun debates that I have had with Glenn on how to define our Industrial Biotechnology space or how to squeeze more contributions out of our Editorial Board and our community. Ellyn has been a tireless and enthusiastic champion of Industrial Biotechnology and an important hub for networking with the diverse members of our community. I ask all of the readers to join me in thanking these two individuals for their roles in shaping our journal!

Our new Executive Editor, Vicki Glaser, has rolled up her sleeves and has jumped into her new role with tremendous energy and enthusiasm. Vicki is well versed in the field and has already been in touch with many of our authors and board members. Vicki joins Industrial Biotechnology after 20 years of work with our publisher, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., including as a writer/reporter for Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News covering a range of topics in drug discovery, molecular biology, bioprocessing, bioanalytics, biofuels, and agbio. Vicki has written bylined articles on science and medicine for many other publications, including Bio-IT World, and was previously associate editor of Nature Bio/Technology, and Laboratory Management. Vicki has served as Program Coordinator of the GREEN Biopharma Conference, the Annual Conference on Regenerative Medicine, and Biophex.

These changes are a wonderful opportunity for us to take stock of where we are and where we are going. Over the last seven years, we have established a solid network for soliciting perspectives and insights from our diverse community, and we seek to expand this network by bringing in new Editorial Board members from Canada, Europe, South America, and Asia. Industrial Biotechnology is a global enterprise and we must find better ways of tapping into a rapidly expanding pool of scientists, technological innovators, and entrepreneurs. In addition, through our expanded Editorial Board, we are seeking to strengthen our inventory of quality scientific and technical manuscripts that can pass the muster of peer review. Our goal remains to have our journal serve as a catalyst to drive industrial biotechnology innovation in order to meet many of the challenges facing sustainable human development and, as always, we need your help in making this happen.

I am very excited about moving the journal to the ‘next level’ and maximizing the opportunities for this journal to provide essential services to our community and the broader global human community. I hope that you will join me on this important journey.