KEYSTONE SYMPOSIA ON MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BIOLOGY

Keystone Symposia's mission states that it “will serve as a catalyst for the advancement of biomedical life sciences by connecting scientists within and across disciplines at conferences and workshops held at venues that create an environment conducive to information exchange, generation of new ideas and acceleration of applications that benefit society “. Our global expansion effort is aimed at bringing the Keystone Symposia brand to other countries with an emphasis on training and mentoring,

The Keystone Symposia business plan called for an increase in the annual number of Keystone Symposia Conferences.

•Keystone Symposia awarded 349 scholarships for conference attendance to deserving graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, funded by its own operating fund as well as generous donor and grant support.

•Women were well-represented among scholarship recipients (51%). Twenty-five scholarships were awarded to students and postdoctoral fellows from underrepresented backgrounds.

•Global Health Travel Awards funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation enabled 181 investigators and clinicians from developing countries to attend meetings in the 2018 Keystone Symposia Global Health Series.

•Attendees completing the exit surveys gave high ratings for professional development opportunities at Keystone Symposia conferences regardless of career stage, affiliation or meeting role. Seventy-nine percent agreed that they made a useful contact at the conference they attended that will lead to a collaboration or sharing of information, data or techniques. Similarly, respondents recognized that the conference had the potential to impact their research regardless of career stage or affiliation. Eighty-eight percent of attendees agreed that the conference facilitated interactions between junior and senior investigators.

•Exit survey respondents reported very high ratings for the scientific content of the conferences regardless of age, region, affiliation or occupation, continuing the same trend observed over the last few years. Ninety-two percent of participants rated the scientific content "Excellent" or "Very Good."