As the second semester of 2024 kicks off, I am thrilled to welcome a new cohort of ambassadors to the Nextflow Ambassador Program. This vibrant group joins the dedicated ambassadors who are continuing their remarkable work from the previous semester. Together, they form a diverse and talented team, representing a variety of countries and backgrounds, encompassing both industry and academia.
This semester, I am proud to announce that our ambassadors hail from over 20 countries, reflecting the increasingly global reach and inclusive nature of the Nextflow community. There has historically been a strong presence of Nextflow in the US and Europe, so I would like to extend an especially warm welcome to all those in Asia and the global south who are joining us through the program, from countries such as Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Ghana, Tunisia, Nigeria, South Africa, India, Indonesia, Singapore, and Australia. From seasoned bioinformaticians to emerging data scientists, our ambassadors bring a wealth of expertise and unique perspectives to the program.
One of the strengths of the Nextflow Ambassador Program is its ability to bridge the gap between industry and academia. This semester, we have an exciting mix of professionals from biotech companies, renowned research institutions, and leading universities. This synergy fosters a rich exchange of ideas, driving innovation and collaboration.
I am particularly happy with this last call for ambassadors. Amazing people were selected, and I would like to highlight a few, though all of them are good additions to the team! For example, while Carson Miller, a PhD Candidate in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Washington, is new to the ambassador program, he has been making impactful contributions to the community for a long time. He hosted a local site for the nf-core Hackathon back in March, wrote a post to the Nextflow blog and has been very active in the nf-core community. The same can be said about Mahesh Binzer-Panchal, a Bioinformatician at NBIS, who has been very active in the community answering technical questions about Nextflow.
The previous round of ambassadors allowed us to achieve a broad global presence. However, some regions were more represented than others. I am especially thrilled to have new ambassadors in new regions of the globe, For example, Fadinda Shafira and Edwin Simjaya from Indonesia, AI Engineer and Head of AI at Kalbe, respectively. Prior to joining the program, they had already been strong advocates for Nextflow in Indonesia and had conducted Nextflow training sessions!
I’m also delighted to see the continuing work of several dedicated ambassadors who have made significant contributions to the program. Abhinav Sharma, a Ph.D. Candidate at Stellenbosch University in South Africa, has been a key community contact in the African continent, and with the support we were able to provide him through the program, he was able to travel around Brazil and visit multiple research groups to advocate for Open Science, Nextflow, and nf-core. Similarly, Kübra Narcı, a bioinformatician at DKFZ in Germany, increased the awareness of Nextflow in her home country, Türkiye, while also contributing to the German research community.
The program has been shown to welcome a variety of backgrounds and both new and long-time community members. Just last year, Anabella Trigila, a Senior Bioinformatician at ZS in Argentina, was a mentee in the Nextflow and nf-core mentorship program and has quickly become a key member in Latin America. Robert Petit, a Bioinformatician at the Wyoming Public Health Laboratory in the US, meanwhile, has been a contributor for many years and keeps giving back to the community.
The upcoming semester promises to be an exciting period of growth and innovation for the Nextflow Ambassador Program. Based on current plans, our ambassadors are set to make sure people worldwide know Nextflow and have all the support they need to use it to advance the field of computational biology, among others. I look forward to seeing the incredible work that will emerge from this talented group.
Welcome, new and continuing ambassadors, to another inspiring semester! Together, we will continue to help push the boundaries of what’s possible with Nextflow.
Stay tuned for more updates and follow our ambassadors’ journeys on the Nextflow blog here and the Nextflow’s Twitter/X account.
Ambassadors are passionate individuals who support the Nextflow community. Interested in becoming an ambassador? Read more about it here.