ScandLAS newsletter Nr:3 -2009
By Jörgen Jönsson - den 6 december 2009
ScandLAS Newsletter no:3 -2009
Sweden - Finland - Estonia - Norway - Denmark
Editor: Lars Friis Mikkelsen, Coeditor Jörgen Jönsson
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Scand-LAS Board to all Scand-LAS members
The Christmas holiday is getting closer and it is time to wish all Scand-LAS members a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
As usual, the biggest event during the year was the 39th Annual Symposium and Educational Days, 23-26 April 2009 in Ystad, Sweden.
Some highlights from the symposium were the “Sign of Honour” award ceremony at the banquet at Ystad Saltsjöbad where Ann-Christine Eklöf received the Scand-LAS Gold Sign of Honour, and Ulla Kristina Stephens and Jörgen Jönsson received the Scand-LAS Silver Sign of Honour for their substantial contribution to the Scandinavian laboratory animal science scene. The Best Scientific Poster award was given to Majbritt Ravn Hufeldt for her poster “Characterizing the intestinal flora in mice” and the Best Alternative Poster award was given to Eva Gynnstam.
Hanna-Marja Voipio
President
The Scand-LAS Board 2009
President: Hanna-Marja Voipio, Finland
Vice President: Lars Friis Mikkelsen, Denmark
Treasurer: Kai Ökva, Estonia and Barbro Salomonsson, Sweden
Secretary: Niina Kemppinen, Finland
Web-master: Jörgen Jönsson, Sweden
National representatives:
Denmark: Lars Friis Mikkelsen & Lene Bregnholt Larsen (substitute)
Estonia: Kai Ökva & Andres Aland (substitute)
Finland: Tarja Kohila & Matti Poutanen (substitute)
Norway: Morten Eriksen & Vera Klafstad Rodas (substitute)
Sweden: Ann-Christine-Eklöf & Mats Sjöquist (substitute)
FELASA/Scand-LAS Symposium, 2010 in Finland
On behalf of the Organizing committee, I have the pleasure to welcome you to the 11th FELASA and 40th Scand-LAS joint meeting titled:
New Paradigms in Laboratory Animal Science
That will be held 14-17 June 2010 in Helsinki, Finland. The venue of the meeting is Marina Congress Center, located at the seaside of downtown Helsinki.
Please see more at: http://www.scandlas.org/felasa2010/index.htm
The FELASA meeting, organized every third year, is the largest European laboratory animal science meeting, where almost thousand scientists and other professionals from all over the world will meet. The programme provides various topics of current interest, covering both scientific and practical aspects. Along with plenary presentations, oral presentations and posters are warmly welcomed. In addition to scientific sessions, workshops and round table discussions, with interactive participation, will be included into the program. A large exhibition, which allows you to get familiar with the most up-to-date equipment and technology, will be arranged. Last but not least, there will be nice social programme to entertain you and serve as a possibility to meet old and make acquaintance with new friends and colleagues.
In June, the weather in Finland is usually pleasant and the white nights with practically day-around sun make your stay unique. The city centre of Helsinki with market place, shops and restaurants are within short walking distance from the conference venue, providing you a glimpse on life style in Finland, the best kept secret of the Western world.
Hanna-Marja Voipio
President, Scand-LAS & Chair of the Organizing Committee
FELASA/Scand-LAS Symposium, Scholarships
The Scand-LAS Board is pleased to announce that Scand-LAS will give 10 Scholarships plus 2 from the Scand-LAS Journal with the value of 1,000 EURO for participation in the joint FELASA/Scand-LAS Symposium in Helsinki, 14-17 June 2010.
For more info, please see the Scand-LAS homepage: http://www.scandlas.org/
The Ulla Kristina Stephens Travel and Education Award
Through a very kind donation from Ulla Kristina Stephens, Scand-LAS got the opportunity to give a stipend for travel and education to one laboratory animal technician, who is a member of Scand-LAS. This stipend will give the possibility for one animal technician to go to American Association of Laboratory Animal Science´ (AALAS) annual meeting and also to visit some animal facilities in the USA in conjunction with the meeting. The award is to provide travel funds, hotel funds, registration fee to the AALAS meeting and a full year membership for the American Association of Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS).
In 2008, the award was given to Christina Ljung from Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden and in 2009, the award was appointed to Josephine Sundborger from Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
We have now got the fantastic information that Ulla Kristina Stephens also for 2010 will donate a stipend. For this initiative we highly thank U K Stephens and hope that the following short reports will inspire some technicians to apply for the 2010 scholarship.
The 2008 scholarship holder Christina Ljung:
In the beginning of March 2008, I applied for the Ulla Kristina Stephens Travel and Education Award for animal technicians. With a thirst of knowledge and only a dream of attending the AALAS in my mind, I submitted my application and recommendation to the Scand-LAS board. After that, I was waiting, I hoped but really not expected a positive answer. I mean it is only one technician from all the Nordic countries and Estonia that have this fantastic opportunity to get this award.
You can imagine my surprise and happiness when I, a month later, got the “Ulla Kristina Stephens Travel and Education Award”!!! I really can not describe my feelings afterwards. I felt like I had won on lottery...Once in a lifetime!
My trip to USA, Indianapolis took place in November 2008, from the 4th until 13th of November. After many e-mail contacts combined with support during spring, summer, and fall from Ulla Kristina Stephens, Fred Douglas (who is the manager of animal facilities at Purdue University) and my director Ann-Christine Eklöf, I finally put my feet at Indianapolis ground.
The first four days, I had the amazing opportunity of spending time with one of the most generous men in the world, Fred Douglas, at his animal facilities at Purdue University. I learned and saw so much and had so much fun that I will never forget!!! After my days in Purdue, I went to the AALAS meeting; catch up with Kristina Stephens, that woman is a gift to the world! Without her, this experience of mine never had happened. A lot of this changed my life in a very good way. The meeting was quite overwhelming, everything is so big!!! - So much good learning and interesting persons. And the fantastic thing is, everyone cares for animals!!! Can’t say more than this was the happening of the year 2008 for me!
For all technicians in All Nordic countries and Estonia, APPLY!!
This is an opportunity and an experience you do not want to be without!!
I like to thank:
Ulla Kristina Stephens for being such a good mentor, for funding and planning this trip including all visits outside the AALAS conference, and for her generosity to let technicians have this opportunity for further education and for just being who she is.
Fred Douglas and his family for taking such good care of me during my first days in USA and for showing me the Animal facilities and how they work at Purdue University.
Ann-Christine Eklöf for in all time and weather helping and supporting me and always being by my side when ever I needed.
Scand-LAS for being a link in the chain making this trip a dream of mine, possible.
All my best! Christina “Kickan” Ljung
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Christina “Kickan” Ljung, Ulla Kristina Stephens and AALAS president Christian Newcomer |
The 2009 scholarship holder Josephine Sundborger:
My name is Josephine Sundborger, and I’m the proud winner and receiver of this year’s “Ulla Kristina Stephens Travel and education award for animal technicians”. For those who don’t know what this is, I will tell you now with a few words.
Ulla Kristina has worked hard her whole life to encourage animal technicians to get further education, be proud, and understand the importance of their job due to both science and animal welfare. She raised this generous award, to give technicians a chance to experience something extraordinary.
The scholarship amount is 300 USD. With this money you’ll get a one year gold membership at AALAS (American Association for Laboratory Animal Science.), registration fee to AALAS national meeting, Hotel, plane tickets, workshops, food and local transportation.
2008 was the first time the award was given. The winner was a dear colleague of mine; Kristina Ljung. We both work at the Karolinska Institute/Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden, at different departments but under the same management. We share the same supervisor Ann-Christine Eklöf, who like Ulla Kristina herself, encourage her staff to develop and to get as much education as possible. She supported and helped the both of us with our applications and any questions regarding them.
Like I said, the award last year went to Kristina. She told me these amazing stories about her time together with Ulla Kristina and all the other people that she came to know during her time in Indianapolis, where the national meeting was held that year.
This spring, I went to Scand-LAS annual meeting in Ystad, where I finally got to meet Ulla Kristina and receive the scholarship during the banquet.
It was difficult to find time to talk in the busy schedule of lectures, classes and workshops. But we managed to find some time to talk about my expectations before this year’s AALAS national meeting in Denver, Colorado.
We decided that I should come down a couple of days before the meeting, so that we’ll have time to visit other facilities and enjoy the beautiful geography of Denver. She asked me about my interests within the working field, and with that information she planned field trips to different facilities around Denver.
I have everything worked out this far, and I’m really looking forward to those nine days together with Ulla Kristina.
This will be my first AALAS national meeting, and from what I’ve heard it is huge!
So before I go, I’ll buy myself a really nice diary that I’ll drag along during the trip to take notes, so that I can share this experience with all of you as soon as I get back.
This is a wonderful and generous opportunity and it didn’t cost me anything to apply, except a couple of hours of my time. A couple of hours that will give me an experience that will last for a lifetime. And I’m pretty sure, that in a couple of months, I’ll tell you that it was well worth it.
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Josephine Sundborger – the 2009 Award winner |
Local activity support applications
Please be aware that the Scand-LAS organisation can support local activities with up to 1,000 EURO.
The activities are not specified beforehand and could be in the technical as well as the scientific field – the activities should be open to both members and non-members, and the more people the activity is aimed at the better.
Examples of local activities are meetings/seminars for scientists/technicians, workshops, excursions and educational material, but all initiatives are welcomed – and activities in cooperation with local institutes/companies/associations are preferred.
The local Scand-LAS board member should be invited to the activity and allowed speaking time to present the association.
In order to obtain this financial support an application must be sent to the Scand-LAS Board explaining the nature of the activity and its target group. A budget must be included.
Please send the application to the following address:
Barbro Salomonsson
Scand-LAS sekretariat
Erstaviksvägen 6
SE-135 47 TYRESÖ
SVERIGE
E-mail: barbro.salomonsson@scandlas.org
About this newsletter
Some of you have got the new newsletter ” ScandLAS update” and some have not.
Why is that? Presumably we have the wrong e-mail address or we don´t have any e-mail address at all. Feel free to contact me to update your record at mailto:Webmaster@scandlas.org
Useful Address:
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