Newsletter
Irene Castellano Pellicena
From early on, Irene Castellano Pellicena recognised the value of the MCAA in providing her with a support network of people going through similar experiences as she was as a researcher. As a newly elected member of the Board, she wants to keep alive the spirit that initially attracted her to the Association.
Irene Castellano Pellicena is a biomedical researcher who has worked in research funding and policy since 2020. She currently holds the title of Project Officer of EU programmes and policy at the Health Research Board (HRB) in Dublin. Irene was at the beginning of her PhD in an MSCA-funded International Training Network (ITN) project when she found out about the MCAA. She immediately joined the Association.
“I wanted to be part of a community of researchers going through similar experiences to the one I was going through. After seeing the power of the Association to support researchers and advocate for their interests, I decided to become an active member.”
This same idea still motivates Irene today and was one of the principal reasons why she decided to apply for the MCAA Board. She believes in the power of community and peer support, not only to benefit researchers but also society at large.
“Being on the frontier between knowledge and the unknown can feel challenging and lonely at times. A diverse community that is supportive of bottom-up initiatives and gives a voice to people of all career stages, disciplines, and nationalities, such as the MCAA, is rare to find in research. Having this community is of paramount importance to make research careers not only valuable and rewarding but also sustainable and capable of delivering benefits for society.”
Throughout her membership, Irene has actively participated in Working Groups, namely the Research Funding and Policy Working Groups, contributed to the organisation of the MCAA Annual Conferences, and chaired the Ireland Chapter since 2022, until her election to the General Board of the Association.
Knowing by heart the significance of the work conducted in the regional and topical divisions of the MCAA, in her new position as a Board member, Irene hopes to collaborate closely with and attract more members to join them.
“I would really like to work closely with the Working Groups and Chapters to encourage bottom-up initiatives and empower members to get involved and lead activities related to topics they are interested in.”
Irene encourages all MCAA members to reach out to her to discuss new ideas, issues, or challenges.
“I hope to represent our diverse community as well as possible, and this can only be done through openness and collaboration.”
Kira Keini
MCAA Communication Officer
kira.keini@mariecuriealumni.eu
@kirakeini