Letter from the Chair - The fruit of accumulated preliminary work
As I write this final letter as Chair, I find myself reflecting on my four years on the Board, the last two as Chair, and on what we have built together and what may come next for the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA).
The MCAA has always been driven by its members. Over these years, it has grown not only in size but in how it works, moving towards a more independent organisation with stronger structures. That shift was not simple. It asked a great deal of many people and required rethinking how the Association should function to keep growing sustainably.
What follows is only a brief and selective account of some of the work carried out over these past years. It cannot do justice to everything that has been done, but I hope it may at least give a sense of the breadth of the effort and of the many achievements it represents.
Building structure and continuity
A real turning point came with the move towards full autonomy through the monobeneficiary Coordination and Support Action (CSA). But before that structure was in place, the Association went through a difficult transition. When the 2022–24 Board took office, it found itself with only very limited support from the outgoing contractors and, for several months, almost none at all. Many essential tasks fell directly to Board members, on a voluntary basis, out of a sense of responsibility towards the community.
I remember this especially clearly in the preparation of the 2023 Annual Conference in Córdoba. Much of the work in the days leading up to the event happened at night, after full working days. I found myself spending long nights on countless practical details, such as designing badges and room signage, while constantly messaging Fernanda, Gledson, and Alexandra, who were also devoting an extraordinary amount of time to the tasks needed to make the conference possible. Alexandra, in particular, carried the additional responsibility of serving as local host at a moment when we had no Secretariat and no contractor support. Only at a very late stage were we able to bring in a local event manager.
What stands out most from that period is the commitment that carried the Association through it. In the past two years, we built on those efforts, securing a second CSA and growing the Secretariat into an operational team of more than 15 people.
Strengthening the organisation
Another major part of this journey has been strengthening the way the Association works. The 2024-26 Board may well be remembered as the Board of procedures. I say that with a smile, but the point is serious. We moved away from reliance on unwritten knowledge towards clearer, documented processes that help the Association function beyond any one mandate. A key result is the Operational Framework, an internal handbook bringing together the main rules and procedures that support much of our work.
We also paid close attention to governance and ethics, including through the creation of a whistleblowing channel that gives members a confidential way to raise concerns. Growth matters, but the way we grow matters just as much.
Serving on the Board today requires a broader understanding of governance and policy than in the Association’s early years. We introduced Board Contact Points to give clearer responsibility for specific areas, and a Leadership Microgrant for Board members to pursue targeted training. We have also been developing a framework for how Working Groups (WGs) and General Interest Groups are created and operate, working towards more consistent practices across the Association.
A growing and truly global community
During these four years, the MCAA has continued to grow as a global community. We now have 41 Chapters, and with the creation of the Oceania Chapter, the Association has expanded to a new continent. Our membership has grown from around 20,000 to more than 24,000 members, representing 161 nationalities.
This growth is one of the Association’s great strengths, but it has to be matched by the ability to support members well and to create meaningful ways for them to participate.
We also revived an earlier practice with a dedicated in-person meeting of Chapter and WG Chairs. Held in Athens in September 2024, it created a space for exchange that online meetings cannot replace. I very much hope it becomes a regular initiative.
We also introduced a structured call for regional events with dedicated funding, supporting activities in several areas, including Latin America, North America, and Central Europe, because for a global association, meaningful engagement cannot happen only in Europe.
Expanding our role in training
Another area of progress has been professional development. Training activities in science communication were piloted successfully over the past three years, and a new course on policy is being prepared for the start of the next mandate. The MCAA Training Programme is still at an early stage, but it marks an important shift and has real potential.
Communicating who we are
A significant effort has also gone into communication. The new MCAA website, long-awaited by our community, marks a major step forward in how we serve our members. Closely linked is the renewal of the MCAA brand identity, reflecting the Association’s evolution from a growing network into a more mature organisation with a clearer public presence.
The MCAA Newsletter has been rethought in format and purpose, reaching beyond the membership to a wider audience. The MCAA Insider has been revamped as a monthly bulletin for Chapter and WG Chairs, strengthening internal communication. We have also taken further steps to support the MCAA in its role as a publisher. As the MCAA continues to grow and consolidate the standing it has reached, I believe the importance of this area will only become clearer.
The opening of a proper office in Brussels is another milestone. After years with only a legal address, the Secretariat now has a real operational base, reflecting the stronger place the MCAA has earned in the European research and policy landscape.
Engaging at a higher level
Perhaps the most significant change has been the strengthening of the MCAA’s role in the wider research and innovation ecosystem through more structured relationships with major institutional actors at the European level.
This was visible in key moments: the first-ever on-site participation of a European Commissioner at an MCAA Annual Conference, and the decision to hold the first Annual Conference in Brussels.
That trajectory reached an important milestone in December 2025 with the first MCAA Policy Forum at the European Parliament and the publication of the first MCAA Policy Study, the MSCA Impact Report. Together, these marked the beginning of a more active policy role for the Association. In parallel, the MCAA has deepened its engagement in the ERA Forum and in ERA Structural Policies and Actions, including through Stakeholder Group 4.
A collective achievement
None of this is the result of one person or one Board alone. These achievements rest on foundations built over twelve years by many members who gave their time and energy to this Association. What the past two Boards did was build on that work and carry it further.
Looking ahead
As I conclude my mandate, I do so with a sense of both completion and continuity. Important steps have been taken that will strengthen the Association in ways that, I believe, will endure.
At the same time, the work is far from finished. What we have built is not an endpoint but a foundation for the future.
If there is one message I would leave, it is that the strength of the MCAA lies in its ability to evolve, adapt its structures and respond to the needs of its community while remaining true to its core values.
It has been a privilege to serve this community. I would like to sincerely thank all MCAA members who have shared this journey with me over the past four years.
Just over a month after the publication of this issue of IRRADIUM, elections for a new Board will take place. I would like to strongly encourage members to consider putting themselves forward.
Let me be frank: serving on the Board is demanding, very demanding, especially if one approaches the role with a sense of duty and responsibility towards the community. But it is also deeply rewarding. It is an experience that gives back a great deal and allows you to contribute directly to shaping the future of the Association and supporting a global community of researchers.
When I reflect on my four years on the Board, I am often reminded of a passage in Marie Curie’s biography of Pierre, where she says that the life of a “scientist in his laboratory is not, as many may think, a peaceful idyll. More often it is a bitter battle with things, with one’s surroundings, and above all with oneself. A great discovery does not leap completely achieved from the brain of the scientist, as Minerva sprang, all panoplied, from the head of Jupiter; it is the fruit of accumulated preliminary work. Between the days of fecund productivity are inserted days of uncertainty when nothing seems to succeed, and when even matter itself seems hostile; and it is then that one must hold out against discouragement” (Curie, 1923, p. 144).
While these words describe research work, they resonate strongly with the experience of serving on the Board. Much of the work is not immediately visible. It is built through long phases of preparation and effort, where progress may seem slow and results distant. There are moments of uncertainty and, at times, frustration, when things do not come together as expected and it is necessary to persist despite discouragement.
At the same time, as in research, results are often born of collaboration. What we accomplish within the Association is the result of a collective effort: the dedication of individuals, certainly, but also the contribution of others, the professional support of the Secretariat, and the energy and passion of our members.
This is not to diminish individual effort and dedication, which can play a decisive role, especially when progress depends on the persistence of those willing to carry ideas forward despite challenges. But the very nature of this Association is to bring people together, combining efforts and perspectives to achieve something that goes beyond what any individual could accomplish alone.
To adopt Marie Curie’s language, everything I have described in this letter is, in one way or another, the fruit of accumulated preliminary work carried out by those who came before us. In the same spirit, I believe that the work done over these past four years, work I have had the privilege to help shape and support, will in time be recognised as accumulated preliminary work of a particularly important kind: the patient and often unseen work of laying foundations on which the Association will continue to grow, strengthen, and flourish.
As I pass on this responsibility, I do so with confidence in the structures we have put in place and in the community that continues to give life to this Association.
Thank you for being part of this journey.
I look forward to seeing where you will take it next.
References
Curie, M. (1923). Pierre Curie. The Macmillan Company.
