Published online 11 November 2009
Postdoc journal
Nice to be appreciated
Julia Boughner
Julia Boughner is a postdoc in evolutionary developmental biology at the University of Calgary, Canada.
Postdoc appreciation day has come and gone worldwide. Did anyone notice?
On 24 September, postdocs at Canadian universities celebrated the first annual National Postdoc Appreciation Day (NPAD). Designated by the US National Postdoctoral Association (NPA), the day recognizes and aims to raise awareness of postdocs' many research contributions.
Here in Canada, a handful of universities held NPAD events, including the University of Ottawa, where about 70 postdocs celebrated with a 'Happy NPAD' cake. At the University of Calgary, our postdoctoral association bought us a pizza lunch, over which about 50 postdocs spoke with our associate vice-president about postdoc issues on campus.
Cakes, pizzas and parties are a nice start. But with so few official postdoctoral associations at Canadian universities, and even fewer institutes recognizing NPAD, we have yet to raise our profile enough to advocate at provincial and federal levels. We do, fortunately, now have an organization in place. The recently established Canadian Association of Postdoctoral Scholars (CAPS) should be lobbying for nationwide improvements and standardized policies on work conditions, career development and professional support. CAPS is run by postdoc volunteers, and needs formal and federal support to sustain itself. Still, there is reason to believe we'll see improvement in the future.
The NPA is now organizing events for the 2010 NPAD. Perhaps at next year's party we'll have more to celebrate.
Postdoc Journal Keepers 2009
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Julia BoughnerJulia Boughner is a postdoc in evolutionary developmental biology at the University of Calgary, Canada.
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Bryan VentersBryan Venters is a postdoc in biochemistry and molecular biology at Pennsylvania State University.
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Joanne IsaacJoanne Isaac was a postdoc studying the effect of climate change on biodiversity at James Cook University in Townsville, Australia. She is now in the United States so that her husband can complete a postdoc.
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Sam WalcottSam Walcott is a postdoc in theoretical biophysics at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
