Underrepresented Minorities in Science: ACNP Strives to Increase Minority Representation and Inclusion

Scientific Societies Fostering Inclusive Scientific Environments through Travel Awards: Current Practices and Recommendations

“…For some, the cost of attending discipline-specific conferences is a relevant barrier to participation, as budget constraints have motivated many academic institutions to reduce their support for these vital activities. Professional scientific societies often offer travel awards to help their members defray the costs associated with attending their annual meetings (King, 2013;Le Duc and DeAcetis, 2011;Bolaños-Guzmán and Zarate, 2016;Segarra et al, 2017). Many societies have also used these travel award mechanisms to foster underrepresented minority (URM) representation and integration at their conferences (Le Duc and DeAcetis, 2011;Segarra et al, 2017), promoting the larger field the society represents to a diverse group of scientists and trainees.…”

“…For some, the cost of attending discipline-specific conferences is a relevant barrier to participation, as budget constraints have motivated many academic institutions to reduce their support for these vital activities. Professional scientific societies often offer travel awards to help their members defray the costs associated with attending their annual meetings ( King, 2013 ; Le Duc and DeAcetis, 2011 ; Bolaños-Guzmán and Zarate, 2016 ; Segarra et al. , 2017 ).…”

Advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP): advances, challenges, and opportunities to accelerate progress

“…The National Institutes of Health (NIH) embraces such policies; its Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (OEDI), states “We cultivate a culture of inclusion where diverse talent is leveraged to advance health discovery” [ 7 ]. These principles have been employed by the American College of Neuropharmacology (ACNP) via membership outreach, annual ACNP meeting participation, and involvement in strategic planning for the future [ 8 ], as well as more recent efforts (Table 1 ). This commentary is based in part on poster presentations at the 2016 and 2018 annual meetings that addressed the trends in meeting participation, membership, and challenges to increasing inclusivity and diversity.…”

Reply to Drs. Hart and Cadet: we agree—the challenges of increasing equity, diversity and inclusion include societal issues and actions now are vital

“…We couldn't agree more! More concerted efforts must be applied to recruiting Black scientists and others, and in creating a climate of inclusion to retain them [3,4]. These efforts should be guided by actively assessing their impact on equity and inclusion and feelings that ACNP membership is culturally and professionally relevant.…”