Identity area
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Date(s)
- 1998-2006 (Creation)
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Extent and medium
1 box of paper material.
Context area
Name of creator
Administrative history
The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) was founded in 1964 as a professional society for life scientists with the goal of strengthening molecular biology research in Europe and fostering international collaboration. Its creation was inspired by a growing recognition in the postwar period that Europe needed stronger infrastructure and cooperation to remain competitive in biological sciences, particularly compared with the United States.
In its early years, EMBO focused on supporting scientific exchange and training, notably through fellowships that enabled young researchers to work abroad and acquire new expertise, as well as its core membership. EMBO also began organising scientific meetings, workshops, and courses that encouraged collaboration and the dissemination of knowledge across national boundaries.
As one way of meeting its goals, EMBO considered the creation of a central laboratory, and along with the EMBC created the EMBL in 1974.
Over time, EMBO expanded its activities to include scientific publishing (launching The EMBO Journal in 1982, followed by other high-impact journals), policy advocacy for life sciences, and the development of programs that supported career progression, such as the EMBO Young Investigator Programme (1999) and EMBO Global Investigator Network (2019).
Today, EMBO represents over 2,000 elected members and associate members worldwide. It continues to play a vital role in promoting excellence in the life sciences through funding, training, networking, publishing, and policy engagement, with an enduring emphasis on international cooperation and scientific quality.
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Content and structure area
Scope and content
This collection comprises materials relating to the Sectoral Meetings held by EMBO. It contains correspondence, and meeting documents such as programmes, participant lists, and reports.
Due to many scientists having primary loyalty to a subsection of molecular biology and therefore a secondary loyalty to molecular biology as a whole, some scientists had the feeling EMBO was not particularly important to their specific sector. The EMBO Council felt that establishing sectoral meetings would be a good way to ensure that the organisation did not miss out on new developments within different areas of the life sciences, and to build up contacts within these areas. It therefore approved meetings with scientists from Neurobiology and Immunology to discuss their impact on society, with a view to holding more meetings on other subsections of the life sciences in the future.
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Existence and location of originals
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