Lights, Camera, Revolution…

A tribute or accolade somehow feels out of character. What drew me to The Newsletter as its editor, in a distant past, was its energy like that of an emerging rock band. It was unconventional, a little defiant even, while it did one amazing thing that I had not seen elsewhere: it connected academics with other academics far outside their own circles. How? With what I’d call punk rock articles, short and captivating. Drawing a diverse crowd in and hopefully drawing them closer together. 

Awards and honours feel anathema to the disruptive rock and roll spirit of The Newsletter. The best thing I can say is that it looks and feels thoroughly different. Love it. Spins and revolutions, spirals and turns. The design is cheeky yet again (nice work, Paul Oram). With it, I should mention the awesome illustrations and photographs as well. I am absolutely thrilled to see that the outlook is broadening to Asia’s relationships with other continents such as Africa. The Newsletter is clearly looking forward, not backward. And much better than that, it keeps renewing and giving opportunities to scientists from across the globe to reach an audience of peers. 

To all at The Newsletter, I hope you keep on rocking the boat, keep floating new ideas, and continue inviting and amplifying new voices, new authors to be heard far and wide across the academic community.

Maurice Sistermans
Editor, 2002 – 2004