Katalin Solymosi has been elected chair of the Young Academy Of Europe
Founded in 2012, the Young Academy of Europe (YAE) is a bottom-up initiative of a group of internationally recognised young scholars from Europe who are also actively engaged in the scientific community. The members are elected by voting after being nominated. In addition to research excellence, the requirements for membership include independent supervising abilities, a wide interest in science policy, and that the applicant must be a holder of a Ph.D. degree for less than 12 years.
This year’s YAE general assembly took place on 9 October, in Munich. After the welcome of the new members, the professional and financial reports, and the scientific lectures delivered by three new members, the members voted on the new leaders. A secret ballot was carried out to fill the three positions in the twelve-member management board of the association that became vacant this year. Additionally, the new chair was elected in the person of Katalin Solymosi. The assistant professor at the ELTE Department of Plant Anatomy and former vice-chair of YAE received 100 percent of the votes.
With her colleagues, Katalin Solymosi investigates the relationships between plastid structure and function using biophysical, biochemical, cytological, anatomical, and physiological methods in the framework of wide-ranging domestic and international collaborations. In addition to being a researcher and teacher, she is also actively engaged in domestic and international science policy, and was previously co-chair of the Hungarian Academy Young of Researchers, as well.
The Board of the Young Academy of Europe from 2022 to October 2023 (from left to right): David Fernandez Rivas (University of Twente), Mona Simion (University of Glasgow), Serim Ilday (Ruhr University of Bochum), Katalin Solymosi (ELTE), Linn Leppert (University of Twente), Gemma Modinos (King's College London), Scott Bremer (University of Bergen), Artur Ciesielski (CNRS Strasbourg), and Anna Kuppuswamy (University College London). Board members missing from the photo: Carme Font Paz (Autonomous University of Barcelona), Pierre-Héli Monot (Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich), and Moniek Tromp (University of Groningen).
Concerning her being elected, the new president said the following: “I was encouraged to apply to the Young Academy of Europe by Enikő Kubinyi and was nominated by members of the Hungarian Academy of Young Researchers at the very beginning of 2020. I participated in the preparation of an international survey investigating the impact of COVID on young researchers – primarily young team leaders – the results of which were published in the scientific journal Nature. As the first Board member from Hungary, I have been involved in the management of the association for three years. I also served YAE as a vice-chair last year. One of my previous priorities was to invite outstanding researchers from the region of Central and Eastern Europe into the association. Furthermore,
I deem it important that we continue our activities in the field of European science policy:
the representation and mentoring of young researchers, as well as participating in the Coalition for the Advancement of Research Assessment (CoARA), and providing the EU with scientific advice through the Young Academies Science Advice Structure (YASAS) in SAPEA+. It is also my priority to continue the series of programmes supporting community building at YAE in the form of webinars focusing on the relationship between science and art, as well as mental health.”
The Young Academy of Europe currently has nine active Hungarian members as well as one alumnus. In addition to Katalin Solymosi, ELTE is represented by Máté Csanád and Enikő Kubinyi in the association.
The general assembly of the Academia Europaea (AE) was held in Munich at the same time. At the joint event of the two organisations entitled Building Bridges Conference, Máté Csanád, full professor at the ELTE Department of Atomic Physics, presented his research area and achievements. This year, Katalin Solymosi handed over the André Mischke YAE Prize and also participated in a panel discussion where the Task Force for Environment, Sustainability, and Climate based at the Academia Europaea reported on one of their workshops that had taken place in Cambridge.