Dr Doug Brown will be leaving his role as the BSI’s Chief Executive at the end of August to take up the position of Chief Executive at the Royal Society of Biology. In his seven years with the BSI, Doug has led a huge transformation in terms of how we operate, including implementation of a new strategy and business model to secure the Society’s financial sustainability. He has been a passionate advocate for immunology, and for the role of the BSI in supporting immunologists everywhere to take on the challenges that will have most impact for human and animal health. We will be sorry to see him go and wish him well in his new role. We caught up with Doug to hear his reflections on his time at the BSI, and his hopes for the future.
First, it would be great to hear your perspective on what you have gained from your time at the BSI.
I’ve gained a huge amount! It has been so great to work with the BSI team, the board and the members, and to see the last thriving so well in recent years. Immunology is one of the most exciting areas of life sciences right now. It reaches across so many disease areas, and it has been so wonderful to be on that journey with immunology for the last seven years.
It was a privilege to lead the Society through the pandemic, where knowledge of the immune system was so critical to understanding infection and combatting the disease through vaccines and other treatments. I learnt and gained a huge amount during that time and am proud of how the immunology community has been so resilient and adapted so well to what the world has thrown at us. For me that has been really inspiring and energising.
How our membership has grown and become more diverse has also been an important learning moment for me. Traditionally the BSI has had members primarily from academia, but in recent years (and deliberately) we have been able to attract members from many other sectors including industry, the NHS and policymaking bodies, bringing all those who work in immunology together in one place. Not only does this strengthen the credibility and influence of the BSI but it also gives us the exciting opportunity to develop what we provide for our members. Getting out and about to meet and hear from members has always been a pleasure, and so wonderful to be able to then work as a team to create new initiatives that our members want like our Career Enhancing Grants or vaccine engagement activities. Learning to listen with an open mind has definitely been a valuable skill to develop.
We have a small but mighty team at the BSI, and I’m always amazed by how much we can achieve for the field and for our membership. We’ve made it much fun too along the way, especially during lockdown. I know that many of our members did creative things during lockdown with their teams and research groups for us; a highlight for me was when I was made (or maybe wanted to…) dress up as a bingo caller and run several games of bingo for the team over Zoom on a Wednesday evening. Who doesn’t enjoy going ‘eyes down’ and waiting for ‘2 little ducks’? It has really enabled us to build a team that is so dedicated and driven for the cause, and to ensure we deliver real-world impact for our community.
Do you have any personal highlights from your time with the Society?
First and foremost, the BSI’s achievements are always a team effort. During the pandemic, it was amazing to see how incredibly quickly our community reorganised itself to tackle the lack of understanding about the virus, and one highlight for me was to see the BSI playing such a crucial role during that time, working with the research community to support collaborative working, rapid knowledge sharing, and translating all that into public health interventions. I am proud that we were able to champion immunology and amplify the voice of our members to influence government policy for the better, as well as to inform the public about the virus and about vaccines. Without a doubt I feel that the BSI really came into its own during this time. We were not afraid to step up and engage, coordinate, influence and inform across all those audiences.
BSI Congress has, of course, always been a highlight! It is such a wonderful event that I will miss hugely – it has been fantastic to be part of the whole community coming together to share knowledge and build new collaborations. Though BSI Congress 2020 in Edinburgh will stick with me in particular… As many of our members will be aware storms had closed all train lines to Edinburgh at short notice and we had members peppered across the UK, all stuck. It was incredible to see that people didn’t give up and go home – they didn’t want to miss out on Congress! Instead, they found every way possible to get themselves into Edinburgh; in fact, I’m pretty sure I’m right in saying that every mode of transport was utilised bar arriving on horseback (though I am certain that some of our members would’ve considered that!). All in all, it made for an incredible Congress, in and out of the scientific sessions.
Being able to get involved in specific research fields in immunology has also been really enjoyable. As a past immunologist myself I have resisted the urge to publicly speak about my favourite immune cell (that would only make me enemies!), but getting stuck into areas like immune ageing, vaccinology, immune therapies or clinical delivery (the list goes on) has been fascinating. One that sticks with me is the International Veterinary Immunology Society Congress I attended in 2019 in Seattle – not least to hear about the advances in veterinary immunology and the strength of the UK in this area, but to also attend the conference dinner and see veterinary immunologists debating the dangers of eating raw oysters given the parasitic infection risk… didn’t stop me enjoying some of the local catch though!
What developments you do expect to see soon in the field of immunology?
Immunology is thriving and will continue to do so. We are understanding more and more about the immune components of disease across human and animal health, and there is still so much learning from the pandemic that can be put to use. Across the community there is a steadfast commitment to working collaboratively on big concepts, big hypotheses, and to come together in such a way that the sum is greater than the parts. I have no doubt whatsoever that the immunology community, with the BSI’s support, will continue to be ambitious and do great things to increase our understanding of the immune system, and to develop treatments and tackle disease.
One area that stands out for me is immune therapies. We’ve had a first generation of these coming through to tackle various disorders, and there is a real sense of excitement that, as we understand more about the immune system, we will see a next generation of such therapies for diseases like cancer. This requires widespread collaboration, from basic scientists and clinical academics to industry and the NHS, and the UK is perfectly placed to be a world leader in this area – I am sure the BSI will continue to remind the powers that be of the importance and value that UK immunology has globally.
There is so much potential in the vaccine space too, and there will be an important role for the BSI in making sure that the UK remains a beacon for testing and developing new vaccines. Animal health is also a very important area, in particular in terms of protecting our food security. Veterinary immunology continues to be a key focus for the Society, and I think there is so much potential in this area. The UK can play a leading role in identifying what research will have the greatest impact, not just in the UK, but also in middle- and low-income countries across the globe.
How will your experiences at the BSI shape the way you approach your new role at the Royal Society of Biology?
My time at the BSI has taught me a lot about being a Chief Executive! This was my first such role and I’ve learned a lot about what type of leader I am. Everything the BSI team does is about enabling the immunology community to be absolutely incredible at what they do on a day-to-day basis, whether they’re in a lab or in industry or the NHS, or work as part of a policymaking body. That teaches you humility.
I have also learnt not to be afraid, and that it’s important to take some risks, while mitigating those risks as best you can. Even before the pandemic, the BSI has continually spoken up about vaccines and other topics, and that can be scary because you’re very visible and you’re open to criticism. But, actually, that’s where the magic really happens. I will take all these lessons with me into my new role.
Oh, and I’ve also learnt to keep Trustees close by when travelling between venues on the London tube network – I don’t want to experience losing a Trustee again (mentioning no names)!
What are you most looking forward to about your new role?
It’s going to be really sad to leave immunology! It’s been such a big part of my career – I did my postdoc in immunology, and my various roles have always had an immunology component. The new role will have that too of course but seeing as my new remit will be so much broader, I am really looking forward to learning as much as I can about all the different aspects of biology. There is so much I need to be curious about and understand quickly so I can work with the team at the Royal Society of Biology to find the opportunities that will have the greatest impact. Because let’s face it, biology holds many of the answers to the challenges that we face globally.
Are there any big challenges you see facing the life sciences more generally?
I think we can safely say that one of the biggest current challenges for the sector is around research funding. These are tough fiscal times and making sure there is enough investment from the UK government is a challenge. We need to make a strong case for the value that life sciences bring to the UK and internationally.
Another big challenge is around the NHS and clinical settings. We need to make sure the NHS can deliver great care to patients but also take part in driving forward translational research, which is so vital to treating, preventing and curing disease. This is something that we continue to champion at an immunology level but is critical across the whole of life sciences.
And then there’s the challenge of international collaboration. We’re in an interesting global environment at the moment, and we know that collaboration across borders is essential if we are to make step changes in our understanding of both immunology and biology. But it is harder now to work with colleagues overseas and harder for people to move across borders to share their expertise. This slows the pace of new discoveries. I think learned societies and professional organisations have a key role to play in facilitating truly global work, so that the life sciences can keep delivering as we need them to.