Speakers List
A recurring issue at conferences and seminars is the underwhelming number of URM speakers giving talks. A commonly cited reason for this is not knowing who to invite. To that end, we’ve begun compiling a list of prominent URM researchers across every field of STEM and Medicine. We hope that conference organizers can use this list as a resource when inviting speakers. However we hope that organizers use this list conscientiously. There is a well-known, and well-documented, issue of “tokenism”, i.e. the idea that women and underrepresented minority researchers are included to give an appearance of diversity. We would like to stress that a diverse conference is not just about representation of minority speakers but also about creating an environment that is conducive to sharing ideas and collaborating. See our “Best practices” page for tips on how to create an inclusive environment.
Finally, we would like to stress that:
(i) Speakers on our list should be compensated properly for their time.
(ii) We are not the only resource out there! Check out this database for more lists of underrepresented researchers.
(iii) Our list is mainly nomination based (we then reach out to the researchers for their consent to be featured on the list). Please consider nominating yourself or others to be on the list! You can do so here or by emailing us at dscnatl@gmail.com.
NOTES ON USING OUR LIST
1) Please see here for the Speakers List in spreadsheet format (useful for more complicated searches), an explanation of all of the fields (and how to search them), and a list of sorted subfields.
2) Our website saves your previous search for future reference! If you would like to clear your search, press the “Clear” button (next to the “Submit” button).
| Field (see Notes for sorted subfields) | Preferred Name | Institution | Position | Description | Website | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inorganic Chemistry, Materials Chemistry | Dr. Luisa Whittaker-Brooks | The University of Utah | Assistant Professor | The Whittaker-Brooks Lab investigates novel inorganic and organic nanomaterials that can be used in solar energy, thermoelectrics, batteries and electronics. | Lab Website | synthetic inorganic-organic chemistry, spectroscopy, nanofabrication, renewable energy |
| Psychology | Dr. Laura Quiñones-Camacho | Washington University in St. Louis | Post-doc | Dr. Quiñones-Camacho is a post-doc in the Perlman lab where she studies the neural underpinnings of parent-child co-regulation and child self-regulation as they relate to emerging psychopathology in childhood. | ResearchGate | emotion regulation, child development, neurodevelopment, psychopathology |
| Developmental Psychology, Neuroscience, Psychology | Dr. Gabriela Manzano Nieves | Weill Cornell Medicine | Post-doc | Dr. Manzano Nieves is a post-doc at the Liston Lab where she investigates how various neuronal subpopulations of cells differentially regulate cognitive processes during postnatal development. | ResearchGate | neuronal circuits, development, learning and memory, stress, fear, reward |
| Materials Chemistry | Dr. Rodrigo Noriega | The University of Utah | Assistant Professor | The Noriega group investigates the dynamic properties of macromolecules in solution and at interfaces using a variety of ultrafast laser spectroscopy tools. We are interested in processes that involve charge, energy, and phase transfer as well as conformational transitions. | Faculty Page | spectroscopy, electronic materials, solvation, macromolecular conformation |
| Materials Chemistry | Dr. Javier Vela | Iowa State University | Professor | The Vela-Becerra Lab investigates new optical and low dimensional materials and heterostructures. | Lab Website | nanocrystal, nanotechnology, computational chemistry |
| Neuroscience | Dr. Anthony Burgos-Robles | The University of Texas at San Antonio | Assistant Professor | The Burgos-Robles Lab investigates how chronic stress can alter neural pathways and increase risk for mental disorders. | Faculty Page | stress, mental illness, reward, amygdala, cognition, emotion, motivation, optogenetics, neurophysiology |
| Microbiology | Dr. Courtney Robinson | Howard University | Associate Professor | The Robinson lab investigates host-associated microbial ecology using insects as model organisms. Specifically her lab looks at microbiome response to invasion, perturbation, and diet. | Lab Website | host-microbiome, diet, immune response |
| Neuroscience | Dr. Mario Penzo | NIH - National Institute of Mental Health | Principal Investigator | The Penzo lab investigates the neuronal circuitry underlying formation/regulation of affective memories and susceptibility to stress. | Faculty Page | memory, emotion, stress, optogenetics, electrophysiology |
| Neuroscience | Dr. Yarimar Carrasquillo | NIH - Intramural Research Program | Principal Investigator | The Carrasquillo lab investigates mechanisms in the amygdala underlying pathological pain states. | Faculty Page | pain, amygdala, limbic system, tactile hypersensitivity, ion channels, neuronal excitability, synaptic transmission |
| Neuroscience | Dr. Tahra Eissa | University of Colorado - Boulder | Research Associate | Dr. Eissa works to develop new models of decision making in dynamic environments. Her previous work has focused on neural activity during seizures using electrophysiological recordings and computational models. | Research Page | seizure, decision making, epilepsy, plasticity, learning |