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May 11, 2021 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM ET This webinar is now open for registration on Neuronline. Thousands of non-coding (nc)RNAs have been identified with functions in processes, such as translation regulation and RNA processing. Different classes of ncRNAs exist, including microRNAs, circRNAs and tRNAs, some of which are enriched in the nervous system and neural cells. This webinar will discuss some of the functions of these ncRNAs in the developing and adult brain and highlights how their deregulation contributes to brain trauma and disease.

Original air date: April 7, 2021 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET More details about viewing this webinar are available on Neuronline. Poor mental health among academics and researchers has long been a problematic and pervasive issue but, until recently, it has largely been ignored or even denied. Recent research (Evans 2018, Woolston 2019) and the increased pressure of the COVID19 pandemic, however, have rendered mental health in academia an urgent topic. Dragonfly Mental Health, a nonprofit dedicated to cultivating excellent mental health among academics worldwide, will lead a webinar that aims to destigmatize mental health struggles among SfN members, discuss the prevalence and manifestation of various mental illnesses among neuroscientists, and start the conversation about how we as a community can better support ourselves and each other.

Original air date: March 3, 2021 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM ET This webinar is now available on-demand to view on Neuronline for SfN members. The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges worldwide and has affected neuroscientists at all career stages. Neuroscientists who are actively looking for a postdoctoral fellowship or faculty position are facing hiring freezes and uncertainty. During this webinar, panelists based in academia and industry will highlight the challenges the pandemic has created for neuroscience employers and job seekers and provide job seekers with strategies for finding and applying for jobs at this time. Recent graduates, postdoctoral fellows, and early- and mid-career neuroscientists who are looking for a position in academia or industry are encouraged to attend.

Check-a-look at this neuroscience and art collaboration exhibit at the international Mozilla Festival 2021! This exhibit features 11 contemporary pieces of art exploring neuroscience themes. https://www.convergenceinitiative.org/convergencemozillaexhibition Thank you Cristian Zaelzer for sharing!

Moving this thread to General Discussion, thanks for sharing!

Dear Members: For educational purposes in neuroscience, we have a YouTube- channel about "Neuroelectric minds". If your are interested in Neuroelectric research please subscribe or "like". link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDvbC_VokhM or search for Juan-Fernando Gomez-Molina. Also in SPANISH. Thank you. Juan Fernando Gomez PhD Principal Investigator, International Group of Neuroscience IGN:N(S,E,P) Independent/Multi-Institutional Group

Thanks for participating! If anyone wants to discuss further about these issues, particularly as they relate to more general science policy and its connection to waste, please feel free to reach out to me. My email is rd2643@columbia.edu

Thank you everyone for joining us today! I hope we were able to help with some of your questions. Working on research sustainability is not easy and might feel overwhelming sometimes, but please remember this is the right road! These are a couple of posts I wrote about the subject, which might help with your interest in making research more sustainable! https://network.febs.org/posts/environmentally-sustainable-research-is-the-only-way-forward https://network.febs.org/posts/what-you-can-do-to-make-your-lab-greener

Thanks for joining us today, please do keep going, it sometimes feels like a hard struggle but once you have a small break through it gets easier.

Yeah. I feel the same way. I am also a post-doc and it seems hard (if not impossible) to actually make a difference, particularly if you are under immense pressure/stress and your lab has a particular way of doing things. One thing that I do is to think about my next career move. If the goal is to run your own research group, think about how you would set up a new lab. What sustainability goals/actions would you emphasize in this new group? It is sometimes easier to implement change when you are starting fresh than to steer a huge ship with momentum in one direction. But, it may be helpful to go into the new position with a list of goals ahead of time because it is very easy to get swept down the same path.

Hello Cynthia, I think the first thing one could do (as a grad student, postdoc, technician...) is to find out whether there is already a sustainability initiative in their research center or a department in charge of sustainability (such as health and safety) and if so, join the team! In any case, try to create a Green team, as working in a community might be easier. Take a look here: https://network.febs.org/posts/what-you-can-do-to-make-your-lab-greener Hope this helps!

I can tell you what we are doing at the Francis Crick Institute. All animal bedding is taken for composting and used for building traffic circles and roundabouts. We also have some projects in progress, working with our building management team to reduce Air flow, which does not impact the animal containers but the room itself. All our animal incubators have a separate air flow so a small tweak to the room airflow will save us £xxx,xxx in energy bills and reduce our carbon emissions.

I feel like theres a lot of people who agree with implementing sustainable initiatives, but not a lot of organization around making this a priority at my institution. Where is a good first place to start as a postdoc?

Hi everyone, thanks for sharing the video and for your advice today. Are there ways for us to be more sustainable when maintaining animal colonies?

I couldn't agree more! The amount of resources wasted because of how the system works does not make any sense...neither for sustainability not for science itself!

If I am summarizing it in short bullet points than these are the main things: choose a venue that has eco friendly practices (waste management, energy and electricity use, free drinking water fountains, green open air areas) choose a location and venue that is easy to reach by public transport minimize waste, print and use of any disposables (catering etc..) make sure waste is managed - recycled or composted choose suppliers with clear eco friendly practices when organizing an event offsite (such as social event) use the same principals allow participants to offset their carbon spent on travel and hotel (a common project the meeting is supporting and the collective offset is contributed toward) even when large international gathering will be possible, allow participants the option to enjoy the meeting online, without traveling and engage with participants on site

Hi Rachel, I believe this is indeed a great opportunity to build back better! I believe we should try to keep developing online meetings and offer this alternative so people can select the meeting they really want to attend in person, without loosing the opportunity to participate. We should always look for a sustainable alternative to flying and promote this alternatives. And in the waste side of the matter, meetings should be plastic free events! and try to promote sustainable food. FENS is a very good example of all this efforts!

Yes. Policy changes that we think may have nothing to do with waste, may actually be the most impactful. An example is to think about changes in publishing. Can we change how we publish data/ideas to make research more collaborative? Can we remove the stigma of "negative" data? Can pre-registration of studies not only make our research better, but also less wasteful? What about peer reviewing study design rather than results?

Put a policy in place, whether it is a personal commitment, lab policy or institute policy on business travel. Work through a hierarchy on the best way to attend the meeting, online, train and have a high authorization that needs to agree air travel and only if is necessary. The FENS conference was a perfect example of what can happen without travelling in science!! Well done FENS!!

You make an excellent point about resource management and efficiency, Rebecca! Shifting the culture to be more efficient with our data collection would fundamentally change how many resources we use and how much waste is generated.

Hello, That's a good point indeed. However, there are many things that we can replace for a more sustainable option. Your example is perfect. Tip boxes are actually a very weird product in which the box make up for about 96% of the plastic! So just by using stackable pipette tip racks if you are using non filter tips, or refill and autoclave the same boxes if you are using filter tips will reduce a lot the amount of waste (by 96%!). Just take a look at the possible sustainable alternatives for the products you are using And take a look here: https://network.febs.org/posts/what-you-can-do-to-make-your-lab-greener

From the operational side, I would speak to your waste manager and find out if they know of a waster contractor that resuse or recycle tip boxes. They certainly do in the UK so it is worth exploring.