Biophysical Society Bulletin | May 2022

Public Affairs

co-sponsorship of bills and resolutions, and signature of over- sight letters. In particular, I had the opportunity to participate in the legislative process for the PREVENT Pandemics Act, a major public health preparedness package, and to work on the Senator’s contributions to the bill addressing areas of medical device supply disruption and therapeutics to combat antimi- crobial resistant pathogens. I’m also fortunate that my tenure is coinciding with nota- ble events in the health policy space. This year, Congress is undertaking the FDA use fee reauthorization process, which occurs every five years and presents an opportunity for legis- lators to revisit FDA authorities, processes, and expectations. Other highlights have included the confirmation process of a new FDA Commissioner, hearings with leading government experts on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic and nation- al response, and establishment of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), a new agency to drive breakthrough translational biomedical and health research. The past several months have been a whirlwind of learning, with new experiences and opportunities around every corner, and I’m excited for what lies ahead. — Max Olender , BPS Congressional Fellow

Call for BPS Ambassadors Program Are you an advocate for biophysics education and knowledge sharing? Have you considered applying for the Biophysical Society (BPS) Ambassador Program to put those skills into action? The BPS Ambassador Program was developed to help make biophysics a more dynamic, inclusive, and interdisciplinary community to better serve the needs of our international membership. Currently, BPS works with twelve Ambassadors representing Argentina, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Turkey, and United Kingdom. The Ambassador Program creates a global network of BPS members that serve as local Society resources in their home countries or regions to promote the field and foster conversations around biophysics. As a BPS Ambassador, you will play

Ambassador Program

Empowering Biophysics Globally

a key role in connecting the Society and its membership with relevant local content, serve as BPS point-of-contact, and help foster discussions on issues of importance to science around the globe. Through this program, the Society hopes to grow the biophysics network by educating and inspiring others to pursue careers in biophysics and further develop its advocacy efforts around the world. For the next class of Ambassadors (2023–2026), we are only accepting applications from outside of Argentina, Australia, Hong Kong, Kenya, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, and Turkey. An ideal country Ambassador is a mid-career to senior scientist, actively engaged in biophysics research and committed to remaining in the field for the duration of the Ambassadorship, an active paid member of the Society in good standing, able to attend the Annual Meeting at the start of their term, works proficiently in English, and has a demonstrated ability to contribute to organizations and scientific societies outside of their normal job duties. To learn more about the program, Ambassador eligibility, and benefits, please visit www.biophysics.org/out- reach/ambassador-program. Applications are open now and will be accepted through June 17, 2022.

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