Elected as MCAA Ordinary Board member

In May 2026, I was elected to the MCAA Ordinary Board and am preparing to officially start my two-year term in September 2026. The Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA) is an international nonprofit organization and alumni community for people who currently benefit from or have benefited from the European Union's Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) research funding.

The MCAA Board, elected every two years to represent our members, is responsible for setting the Association's strategic objectives and direction. Five of the 11 Board members form the MCAA Executive Committee (Chair, two Vice-Chairs, Treasurer, and Secretary) and are responsible for decision-making regarding the Association's management.

Bridging research and policy: Engaging researchers in science diplomacy

In April 2026, I was part of a group of several members of the Marie Curie Alumni Association who prepared and published a joint MCAA policy paper titled “Bridging research and policy: Engaging researchers in science diplomacy” (MCAA Policy Papers, n. 2/2026). The paper welcomes the European Commission’s proposal for a Council Recommendation on a European Union (EU) framework for science diplomacy and explains why this initiative marks an important milestone in reinforcing the EU’s strategic, scientific, and geopolitical influence while advancing multilateralism. It can be accessed here

Empowering Researcher Networks as Strategic Actors in Science Diplomacy

As a member of the MCAA Policy Working Group and the current Science Diplomacy task force leader, I moderated a panel discussion on Science Diplomacy at the annual conference of the Marie Curie Alumni Association, held in April 2026 in Brussels. The session explored how researcher networks can inform political agendas, translate community-driven evidence into actionable policy insights, and preserve a stable space for collaboration during significant geopolitical disruptions.

It featured three insightful, well-prepared speakers who approached the topic from different institutional and regional perspectives: Jan Marco Müller, the coordinator of science diplomacy at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation; Luisa F. Echeverría-King, the president of the Organization of Women in Science in the Developing World of UNESCO; and Mostafa Moonir Shawrav, who represented MCAA as Executive Director and former Chair of the MCAA and EU Science Diplomacy Alliance.