Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Prize Winners
Find out more about what winning the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Prize meant to previous winners and more about their outstanding contributions to the discipline of microbiology.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Prize Winners
2025
Professor Nicola Veitch, Dr Leighann Sherry, Dr Stewart White and Dr Victoria Paterson
Embedding Equality, Diversity and Inclusion into Biosciences Undergraduate Curricula through Staff-Student Partnerships
“We are all thrilled to be part of the team receiving the Microbiology Society EDI prize, recognising our commitment to embedding EDI into our Life Science curriculum. We strive to make our teaching practices inclusive and have been developing new resources around this in relation to decolonising the curriculum in collaboration with undergraduate and postgraduate students for many years. The prize is excellent recognition for the hard work put in by students, who generated many of the resources, working alongside the University of Glasgow staff. We would also like to acknowledge the funding from The Wellcome Trust and the University of Glasgow Learning and Teaching Fund, without which the project would not have been possible.”
2025
I’ah Donovan-Banfield, Dr Ariangela Kozik, Dr Nikea Pittman, Dr Chelsey Spriggs, Dr Ninecia Scott and Dr Kishana Taylor
Black Microbiologists Association
If Not Now, When? Building a Community to Empower Black Microbiologists
I’ah Donovan-Banfield said: “Winning the inaugural Microbiology Society EDI Prize is a tremendous honour. The Board of Directors of the Black Microbiologists Association has dedicated an incredible amount of effort to developing Black in Micro Week into a sustainable project over the past four and a half years.”
Dr Nikea Pittman said: “Our greatest victory is the impact we are making for early-career scientists. BMA was born as a vision of postdocs and graduate students - all advocating for the type of change we’d been told wasn’t possible.”
Dr Ariangela J. Kozik said: “Winning this prize in recognition of this (sometimes undervalued) work is a profound honour that acknowledges not just our efforts, but the resilience and dedication of our entire community.”
Dr Kishana Y. Taylor said: “BMA and the greater #BlackinX movement was something unexpected but so imperative in a time of isolation and massive political unrest. I am so grateful for everyone on the team and the work they have put in to make BMA what it is today.”
