Blog

27/09/2023

A day in the life of a roving researcher

The Institute’s Roving Researcher scheme, running since 2020, provides support for scientists taking long term leave. The postdoctoral position helps maintain momentum on projects by working closely with researchers on leave. Jayalini Assalaarachchi writes about her experience taking on the role. 

23/08/2023

Creating trans inclusion at work

Following on from recent trans inclusion training, Elizabeth reflects and provides advice on how organisations and individuals can further create an inclusive environment for gender diverse people.

26/04/2023

Celebrating the contributions of the Islamic world to natural sciences

Arqum writes about the history of Islam and science in the first of two blogs about Muslim scientists.

19/04/2023

Inclusive communications – a beginner's guide to being a better communicator

15/02/2023

Khuluud’s story: Research Access Programme 2022

Khuluud shares her experiences from her placement in the Liston lab as part of last summer's Research Access Programme.

04/01/2023

Marzana's story: Research Access Programme 2022

Marzana discusses her experiences in the Corcoran lab on this summer's Research Access Programme.

12/12/2022

The equality4success Alternative Gift Guide 2022

09/11/2022

Hanan's story: Research Access Programme 2022

Hanan shares her experiences of her Research Access Programme placement in the Flow Cytometry facility.

19/06/2022

Using the roving researcher scheme during paternity leave

After the success of our Roving Researcher scheme to support scientists on leave, we have opened the scheme up to other types of leave. In this blog, Aled shares his experience using the scheme for paternity leave.

08/03/2022

Ten talking points to #BreakTheBias

Cheryl has "had the absolute pleasure of being a member of the Babraham Institute’s EDI programme equality4success since 2015, leading it for the last four years. As she comes to the end of her involvement to move to another organisation, it seems timely to reflect on the talking points from the last seven years as we try to #BreakTheBias."

02/03/2022

equality4success book reviews

Staff and students from the Babraham Institute share reviews on a new range of books about equality, diversity and STEM.

14/02/2022

Reflections on 'Pride: The Story of the LGBTQ Equality Movement' by Matthew Todd

Former postdoc, Dr Jenny Mitchell, shares some thoughts on the book 'Pride: The Story of the LGBTQ Equality Movement' by Matthew Todd for LGBTQ+ History Month.

19/01/2022

Roving Researcher FAQs

After our blog last year which shared the experiences of our Roving Researcher and a postdoc she was supporting, many people got in touch to ask us how the role worked, what were the benefits and downsides, and other details of the programme. Here Cheryl, who designed the role and line manages the Rover, answers some of the most frequently asked questions.

01/12/2021

The equality4success Alternative Gift Guide 2021

The holidays are upon us once again so Elizabeth is back with a whole new set of gift suggestions!

26/10/2021

Reflecting on HeLa cells: 70 years on

Our e4s Bite series aims to cover EDI issues in bite size chunks and the most popular talk by far was on the history and ethics of HeLa cells. This Black History Month, Elizabeth revisits the topic for a deeper dive into the place of HeLa cells in modern research.

08/10/2021

Managing mental illness at work

Mental health at work is still a taboo subject so in order to challenge that stigma this World Mental Health Day, Elizabeth and her manager, Cheryl, share frankly what a recent situation was like for them and how they handled it.

16/02/2021

Thinking beyond binaries

It's easy to think of the world in black and white, good and bad, right and wrong; but binary thinking can be very limiting. Kate was interested in learning more about how this works and the long ranging effects and here she shares what she's learned about binary thinking.

08/01/2021

A tale of two Melanies: mitigating the impact of lab long term leave

Long term leave, like maternity leave, has major impacts on researchers' careers. At the Babraham Institute, we've trialled a roving researcher position to support scientists on leave. Melanie and Melanie share their stories from both sides of the experience here.

27/11/2020

The equality4success Alternative Gift Guide

The holidays are upon us once again so Elizabeth is back with a whole new set of gift suggestions!

17/11/2020

A tribute to Michael Wakelam

Since it began, Michael Wakelam was a permanent member of the Institute’s Athena SWAN Self Assessment Team, now equality4success. Here, the two chairs of the committee share their memories of working with Michael and how he was essential to the Institute’s achievements in improving diversity and inclusion.

27/03/2020

equality4success book reviews

Staff and students from the Babraham Institute share reviews of a variety of books about equality, diversity and STEM.

10/03/2020

Celebrating women at the Babraham Institute

Women contribute to the Babraham Institute in roles throughout the organisation including students, cleaners, group leaders, nursery staff, and many more. This International Women’s Day, we are celebrating their achievements with five women sharing their stories.

06/02/2020

Relearning how to speak: how to be more inclusive every day through language

Language is an important tool in creating inclusive environments but how can you be sure to get it right? In this article, Elizabeth gives some advice on basic principles that will help communicate inclusively.

12/11/2019

The equality4success Alternative Gift Guide 2019

Elizabeth is back with a selection of fun stereotype-defying gifts that entertain and inform. You're sure to find something you want to get for people on your list, or maybe yourself!