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Priorities for our Future
Message from the President Kym Kilbourne Message from the President Kym Kilbourne

Priorities for our Future

As I begin my term as President of the ISSCR, I am honored to serve this dynamic and forward-looking global community of stem cell researchers, clinicians, and innovators. This year marks the final phase of our 2022–2025 strategic framework, which has guided our efforts around four central goals.

In the year ahead, I intend not only to complete these goals but also to critically reflect on the progress we’ve made. What worked well? What challenges remain? And how can these insights guide our vision for the next strategic cycle? These four pillars remain deeply relevant and will continue to shape the ISSCR’s direction in the coming years.

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Together, We Continue to Unlock the Full Potential of Stem Cell Research
Message from the President Kym Kilbourne Message from the President Kym Kilbourne

Together, We Continue to Unlock the Full Potential of Stem Cell Research

I am truly honored and humbled to have been elected as the next President of the ISSCR. I have been a member of this society for nearly two decades. My research centers on using stem cells to understand the development of the nervous system—especially the brain—and to explore ways to promote regeneration in disease contexts. Through ISSCR, I have had the privilege of engaging with leading experts across a vast spectrum of disciplines, from fundamental biology to translational and clinical research. I am grateful for the opportunities and mentorship I have received, and I now see it as my responsibility to give back to this incredible community.

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Message from the President | Year in Review: 2024-2025
Message from the President Kym Kilbourne Message from the President Kym Kilbourne

Message from the President | Year in Review: 2024-2025

As I reflect on this past year as ISSCR President, I feel gratitude for what I have learned and the outlook it has given me on the Society and on the field it represents. I will share a few reflections below. 

 As I began in my role, I realized that I had only a superficial understanding of the work of more than 200 volunteers and ISSCR team members. With Director of Media and Strategic Communications Kym Kilbourne, I have embarked on monthly interviews and email correspondence with colleagues in leadership roles to learn about the work of the ISSCR committees, task forces, and working groups. It has been humbling to listen to them and to experience the passion and commitment each of them brings to our Society. Their work spans large subfields of regenerative biology and medicine allowing us to form public and regulatory policy priorities, educate ourselves and others, participate in manufacturing innovations, and wrestle with important ethical questions, to name just a few. It was a privilege to report on their work monthly in my president’s messages.  

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Shared Leadership Delivers Impact
Message from the President Kym Kilbourne Message from the President Kym Kilbourne

Shared Leadership Delivers Impact

For my last Message from the President, I had the opportunity to connect with the Co-Chairs of the ISSCR’s Best Practices for the Development of Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Therapies Jacqueline Barry and Kapil Bharti and the Co-Chairs of the Embryo Models Working Group Amander Clark and Janet Rossant to discuss these strategic initiatives. The Society often assembles members from across the world with specific expertise for short-term projects. These two groups are among them and have produced exceptional work on behalf of the field.  

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Education Committee is Focused on “Lowering the Threshold for Activation” 
Message from the President Kym Kilbourne Message from the President Kym Kilbourne

Education Committee is Focused on “Lowering the Threshold for Activation” 

This month, I caught up with Eugenia Piddini and Jaime Imitola, the Chair and Vice Chair of the Education Committee to learn about their work in general as well as the latest major contribution to build the first continuing education course on stem cell medicine. This work exemplifies how committees have come together to produce new and exceptional opportunities with lasting impact on our field. One strong theme that came through in our conversation is the deep belief of the critical role that education plays in all we do, and the need to present current information in ways that bridge experts across different specialties (i.e., clinicians, basic scientists) and areas of stem cell science and regenerative biology for the benefit of medicine and patients.  

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