Earlier this month, the ISSCR opened abstract submission for the 2022 Annual Meeting. It’s a much-anticipated moment, not only for potential speakers, but one that signals the rejoining of our community in person. It also marks the 20th Anniversary of the ISSCR Annual Meeting, a meeting home to the most impactful people and ideas in stem cell research and regenerative medicine.

The ISSCR and Japanese Society for Regenerative Medicine (JSRM) are partnering to host the virtual Tokyo International Symposium, “Stem Cells: From Basic Science to Clinical Translation,” from 27-29 October 2021. The meeting kicks off at 9:00 a.m. JST on 27 October/8:00 p.m. EDT on 26 October.

The past 20 years has seen such enormous change in stem cell science, some of which has changed our view of biology. Having attended the very first meeting of the ISSCR, the Society is like an extended family, and I feel a little like my science has grown along with the Society.

The ISSCR is pleased to announce Keith Alm will today assume the role of CEO. He replaces retiring Nancy Witty, after 16 years of leadership.

The ISSCR is pleased to announce Melissa H. Little, PhD, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and University of Melbourne, Australia, as president of the ISSCR Board of Directors.

Our organizations represent scientific, medical, and patient communities dedicated to advancing medical knowledge and improving human health. We support the continued use of human fetal tissue (HFT) in research because it is an indispensable biomedical research tool crucial for life-saving biomedical research.

What an extraordinary year this has been for science. We witnessed an amazing international response for vaccine development to combat COVID-19. Never before has a drug passed so quickly from the bench through regulatory hurdles to beside. We saw science take center stage in the media as our community rose to the challenge of the pandemic. And, behind the headlines of COVID-19, we watched our colleagues pass major milestones in stem cell research and regenerative medicine.

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) today released updated guidelines for stem cell research and its translation to medicine. The update reflects emerging advances including, stem cell-based embryo models, human embryo research, chimeras, organoids, and genome editing.

We are weeks away from the ISSCR 2021 Annual Meeting, and there is much to anticipate in the meantime. There are so many new programs and announcements coming up for our members and the stem cell community in the next two months, I thought I would take this month’s column to highlight a just a few that I am excited about.