The 5th AfroBioTech Conference 鈥� an event dedicated to exploring the innovative applications of biotechnology developed by Black scientists 鈥� was held Feb. 16鈥�18 at the John Lewis Student Center at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, GA. The conference was launched in 2019 as a platform to promote innovation and highlight the contributions of Black scientists, while helping to combat historical bias in the biotechnology and medical sectors. At this year鈥檚 conference, nearly 125 attendees from academia, industry, and the public sector gathered to discuss work at the forefront of regenerative engineering, medical biotechnology, genomics and genetics, computational and systems biology, and more. This conference was created by the Society for Biological Engineering (SBE), an AIChE technical community.
In discussing the conference鈥檚 origins, Karmella Haynes, AfroBioTech Conference founder and Emory Univ. and Georgia Tech professor, explained, 鈥淚 had served on several national and international conference organizing committees. Every time the topic of representation came up, organizing committee members who wanted to improve inclusion would often comment that they simply didn鈥檛 know any senior scientists from marginalized groups.鈥� Haynes added, 鈥淟ow numbers are a symptom of historical marginalization, and, on top of that, the few of us that are out here are not always highly visible. So, I set out to build a platform to provide greater visibility to scientists from minoritized groups, specifically African American and African Diasporans.鈥�
Keynotes and programming
Technical programming began Sunday, Feb. 16, with keynote speaker Ted W. Love from the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), in which he discussed the history of biotechnology and the necessity of inclusivity for unlocking its potential. This opened the session 鈥淏ioengineering and Our Community,鈥� dubbed 鈥淔or Us, By Us (FUBU) Sunday,鈥� which is a newer addition to the conference鈥檚 programming added at the third conference. This programming featured many speakers, like Joy Jackson of Georgia Tech and Jasmine Kwasa of Carnegie Mellon Univ., who sought to highlight innovative technologies that combat existing racial biases in medicine, from specific innovations like electroencephalogram (EEG) testing technology for people with highly textured hair to broader issues like systemic bias in neuroscience.
The second day of the conference featured discussions of the ways that researchers can secure funding and form industry partnerships, and began with a keynote speech by Edward Botchwey from Georgia Tech. This theme was later continued in the workshop 鈥淧ositioning Your Research to be Funded by Industry,鈥� led by Cheri茅 Butts of Biogen and Leopold Green of Purdue Univ., in which they laid out workable paths researchers can take to align their research and financial goals with industry. This day also included a rapid-fire poster session in which presenters from all over the world were given two minutes to present their research to attendees.
The third and final day of the conference began with a keynote speech titled, 鈥淟everaging Blood Biomechanics to Drug the Immune System,鈥� from Lola Eniola-Adefeso of the Univ. of Illinois, Chicago. In this presentation, she discussed the role that particle geometry, deformability, material chemistry, and blood rheology/dynamics play in the effectiveness of particle-based therapeutics. The conference concluded with a session on regenerative engineering, featuring speakers from the Univ. of Florida, Johns Hopkins, and Morehouse College.
What鈥檚 next for AfroBiotech
Over the years, the conference has adapted to best reflect the work researchers are engaged in and the lived experience of the attendees, placing a larger emphasis on the importance of community. New to this year鈥檚 conference was a virtual pre-conference poster development and presentation workshop, led by graduate student volunteers from Georgia Tech. As the conference organizing team looks to the future, Haynes hopes to increase the number of attendees and expand the conference鈥檚 reach to include smaller workshops that occur between conferences. 鈥淚 would also like to engage more industry representatives who are scouting for diverse talent, and can also share ideas and opportunities for academic research to synergize with industry,鈥� Haynes said.
To stay on top of upcoming conferences, check out www.aiche.org/conferences to explore the variety of programming supported by AIChE and visit www.aiche.org/chenected to access AIChE鈥檚 blog and Institute news.
This article originally appeared in the Institute News column in the June 2025 issue of CEP. Members have access online to complete issues, including a vast, searchable archive of back-issues found at www.aiche.org/cep.