The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) has announced it plans to set up a program of research awards funded by member states. The idea was sanctioned at a recent meeting of the European Molecular Biology Conference (EMBC), a gathering of the 24 member states of the nearly 40-year-old body.
It marks a change of direction for EMBO, which boasts 1200 scientist members, more than 36 of whom have been awarded the Nobel Prize. So far, the organization has focused its financial resources on providing fellowships for research scientists, organizing courses and workshops and supporting promising young investigators in molecular biology.
Announcing the move in a press statement released earlier this week, EMBC president Professor Julio E. Celis said it would make the organization "even more central" to the promotion of biosciences in Europe. But he also made it clear that the program could act as a prototype for other, more...