This year is the 60^th Anniversary of FEBS and we are delighted to see the ongoing celebrations featured on the SEBBM Magazine September issue. An excellent collection of articles in the magazine’s Scientific Dossier section highlighted not only the anniversary activities but also explored the close, indeed foundational, relationship between SEBBM and FEBS. If you can read Spanish, or are happy to use an online translation tool, we encourage you to explore the original articles (and photos), as this summary only captures a fraction of what the writers recount from their time at FEBS.

The first article, from Jerka Dumić and Irene Díaz-Moreno, unfurled the awards, talks, competitions, grants, and publications that FEBS has been sharing for its 60^th Anniversary, including the FEBS 60th Anniversary Session at the 48th FEBS Congress. The article concludes with a tribute to SEBBM members who have played pivotal roles within FEBS, including those who served on various FEBS committees and others who held positions on the FEBS Executive Committee. This spans from the chairing of Julio Rodríguez Villanueva (1969–1971) to Miguel A. De la Rosa’s current role as Secretary General (2023–2028), along with many others in between, some of whom are contributors to this issue.

On the second article, Miguel A. de la Rosa explains which challenges lay ahead for FEBS. As the global publication system pivots to open access, he highlights securing sufficient income as the primary concern to allow FEBS to continue funding the activities it supports. To achieve this, FEBS has set up a new marketing and communications team, to scout and secure additional funds. Miguel finishes his article proudly flagging FEBS 60th Anniversary, and particularly the FEBS 60^th Anniversary Session at the FEBS Congress, hosted by Jerka Dumić, which boasted contributions from five former FEBS Secretary Generals as well as from current leaders of bioscience organisations, such as Maria Leptin (ERC) and Alexandra Newton (IUBMB).

The third article brings us Federico Mayor, former SEBBM President (1972–1976) and Chair of the FEBS Science and Society Committee (2001–2007), who reminds us of the role that FEBS had in the creation of the European Research Council (ERC – more information on this topic is available from chapter 12 of the book FEBS at 50 – Half a Century Promoting the Molecular Life Sciences). Federico also highlights the importance of the FEBS Science and Society Committee, not just in bridging the general public and the research community, but also in monitoring and advising on key European science policy issues, such as on the need to support research excellence in Europe, which led to the creation of the ERC.

The fourth article is by Carlos Gancedo, who was the Chair of the FEBS Fellowships Committee (1984–1992) and the Chair of FEBS (1996–1998). As one of the earliest leaders of the FEBS Fellowships Committee, he remembers how the committee members communicated by postal mail and, only by the end of his term, occasionally by fax. The committee standardised the review processes, such as the application forms, and managed to reduce the time from submission to award notification to two months, an achievement considering the slower pace of communication then!

Carlos also recalls how important FEBS short-term fellowships – small grants to visit a lab in a different country – were for many young investigators at a time when Europe was divided into two opposing political blocs. The fact that FEBS had Societies and Committee members from both blocs helped in getting some of those young researchers permits to travel across the divide. He urges readers to always remember the importance of preserving researcher mobility, and of continuing to support young scientists, noting that Nobel Laureate Svante Pääbo was once a recipient of a FEBS short-term fellowship.

The fifth article brings us Vicente Rubio, another Chair of the Fellowships Committee (2011–2013), a committee that he also served as a member at other times from 2008 to 2023. The start of his chairing coincided with a period of relative financial prosperity at FEBS, which used those funds to support a range of grants and fellowships, from short-term ones to longer fellowships, collaborative grants for early career researchers from post-USSR countries, and grants for researchers returning to Europe.

Some key initiatives from this period included the launch of the first FEBS Fellows Forum in 2012, providing FEBS fellows an opportunity to meet and network prior to the FEBS Congress, as well as transitioning to a paper-free, digital fellowship application process – an essential change as the number of submissions increased over time. Vicente was also involved in the attempt to change the fellowships from stipends to contracts, a move that was ultimately unsuccessful and contributed to the phasing out of the FEBS long-term fellowships (which have been now partly replaced by the FEBS Excellence Awards).

The sixth article, by Joan Guinovart, explores the standardisation and digitalization of the FEBS Congress. Joan, who was FEBS Congress Counsellor (1997–2005), presided over a period of standardisation of the Congress, which required that organisers followed a template for the event (before, the event’s structure was decided each year by the organisers). The current Congress duration (5 days starting on a Saturday), timing (from mid-June to early July) and collaborations (e.g., with IUBMB and PABMB), as well as the creation in 2001 of the popular Young Scientists’ Forum, were developments that Joan was involved in. He also flags the move towards digitalization of the Congress in the use of websites and in the application and abstract submission online systems.

We move on to the seventh article, from Félix M. Goñi, who was Chair of the Publications Committee (2006–2011). He writes with wry humour and despite claiming an unreliable memory, he recalls eventful committee meetings, amusing email communications with the editors of the FEBS journals, and warm collaborations with committee peers. He also recalls the appearance of Open Access at the time as a shift in publishing with the potential to affect FEBS, adding that it was difficult in the early days to guess its precise impact.

The eighth article, and last of the collection, is from Irene Díaz-Moreno, the current Chair of the Careers of Young Scientists Committee (2018–2026). She describes how the committee, initially a small working group, grew as it acquired additional responsibilities, from the first Yong Scientists’ Forum to the subsequent FEBS-IUBMB-ENABLE conference series and the FEBS Junior Section, all of them activities for early career researchers and usually also organised by them.

Irene also explains how FEBS strength lies in the synergies and collaborations across the different FEBS committees, as well as with external organisations. This cross-linking can lead to fruitful opportunities, especially for young scientists, and is a cornerstone of FEBS strategic plan and networking approaches across Europe and beyond.

This collection of articles appeared on the September 2024 issue of the SEBBM Magazine, issue number 221. The issue can be accessed on the SEBBM website and downloaded as a PDF.

Photos by FEBS.