Today on a very special back to school episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back, San Diego Executive Director Alicia Quinn Kitagawa speaks with Afira DeVries, the President and CEO of the Monarch School Project, which has been dedicated to providing a sense of belonging for thousands of unhoused youth and their families in San Diego since 1987. The episode is an open, fascinating and informative conversation that touches on a number of important topics including the reemergence of the community school model, the ramifications of the unhoused situation in America today and how restorative and trauma informed thinking and techniques can positively impact school age children. This is a dynamic and inspirational conversation that you need to listen to as soon as possible. To learn more about how Life Science Cares works closely with each of our grant partners like the Monarch School Project go to lifesciencecares.org.

In this episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back, Life Science Cares’ CEO Sarah MacDonald sits down for a wide ranging and insightful conversation with John Crowley the President and CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization. Known broadly as BIO, it is the world’s largest biotechnology advocacy organization, representing biotechnology companies, academic and research institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations.John and Sarah touch on and examine a number of topics including the urgent need to increase access to essential care, the rapid evolution of the industry over the last 50 years, the increased importance of storytelling for the industry in the modern communications era, as well as the promising future of biotech in the United States and beyond.We promise that you’ll enjoy this exceptional and enlightening episode with our esteemed guest and host.Please go to lifesciencecares.org to learn more about the impact that Life Science Cares has had on the many communities that it serves throughout the United States.

In the latest episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back we look at the state of immigration and the plight of today's immigrants through the lens of three Life Sciences Cares’ nonprofit partners. From Boston to Philadelphia to San Diego, each of these organizations is doing incredible work to support and help thousands of immigrant families in their journey to find their place in the United States, a land of opportunity and possibility for so many. The podcast begins with Larry Seamans, the President of FamilyAid Boston, which is the city’s largest organization solely dedicated to children and parents facing homelessness, providing prevention services, emergency shelter, housing placement and support, and comprehensive case management to thousands of families each year. Larry and Sarah touch on a number of important issues including the impact of COVID four years later, innovation in immigration services and the impact of the current immigration surge on families and especially young children. Based in Philadelphia, Cathy Jeong is the Director of Survivor Services for the Nationalities Services Center (NSC), which provides comprehensive services to immigrants and refugees, including free or low-cost legal protections, community integration, access to health and wellness services, and ESL classes. Cathy talks with Sarah about the role of NSC and Life Science Cares in serving the most vulnerable populations in our communities, as well as the plight of unaccompanied minors and the support available to help them on their journey to safety here in the United States.  To end the episode, we sit down with Anchi Mei is the Founder and Executive Director of MAKE Projects. which stands for Merging Agriculture, Kitchens and Employment. Located in San Diego, the employment social enterprise operates an urban farm, restaurant, and events/catering company to provide a paid, real-world work experience for low-income refugee and immigrant women and youth. Sarah and Anchi cover a number of relevant topics including the importance of early employment in our pluralistic society and how a social enterprise organization is ideally positioned to help immigrants successfully integrate into their communities through a combination of work and language training. For more about the impactful work that Life Sciences Cares is doing with our nonprofit partners please visit our website at lifesciencescares.org.

ROI serves as an important benchmark for all life sciences companies, whether it involves a pipeline candidate, new products, or marketing strategies. But what does ROI have to do with creating a culture of care?In this episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back, our guests Troy Wilson, CEO of Kura Oncology, Kate Wilson, President of the Gilead Foundation, Matt Gline, CEO of Roivant, and Tom Croce, Vice President of Global Patient Advocacy at Jazz Pharmaceuticals join host Morgan Berman, Executive Director of Life Science Cares Philadelphia, to explore how creating a culture of care ensures overall business success, achieves a competitive advantage within their specific business landscape, creates a supportive work environment for employees, and maintains a genuine, distinct corporate identity.This is an insightful, information rich conversation on an essential topic that you do not want to miss. To learn more go to lifesciencecares.org.

Hosted by the Executive Director of Life Science Cares Bay Area Aisha Baro, the latest episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back, is a panel discussion that explains how mentorship makes a workplace more reflective of the diverse patient population that the life sciences industry serves, while also fostering an inclusive workforce. Baro is joined by Jennifer Condon, Vice President, Head of Talent Acquisition Global Research & Development from Takeda, and Trisha Millican the CFO of Architect Therapeutics, and Dee Olomajeye, Vice President of People and Culture Strategy at Senti Bio.  The power of proactive mentoring programs within the life sciences industry is an essential employee and company growth strategy spearheaded by company leadership, these programs have the potential to drive positive change by developing real, genuine connections at every level of an organization or business. The dynamic roundtable conversation details how mentoring is a crucial asset that enables a workforce to better cope with career challenges, while delivering results for their organizations including the attraction and retention of diverse, high potential talent. Data Points of Interest • Per a recent Cornell University study, mentoring programs enhanced promotion and retention rates for minorities and women by 15% to 38% compared to non-mentored employees. • Forbes recently reported that 87% of mentors and mentees feel empowered by the relationship and reported greater confidence and career satisfaction. • A national survey recently revealed that 67% of businesses reported an increase in productivity due to mentoring.Learn more about how Life Science Cares’ programming, activities, and membership are encouraging these connections at lifesciencecares.org.

This episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back features the “Reputation Reboot: Steps to Restoring Public Trust in the Biopharma Industry,” panel discussion that took place at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 9th in San Francisco. The panel brought together several industry heavy-hitters to tackle how we can enhance trust by demystifying our work, sharing empathy and information, and providing opportunities for communities to engage. Introduced by Rob Perez, the Founder and Chairman of Life Science Cares, and moderated by Jim Weiss, the Founder & Chairman of Real Chemistry, the panel includes Ted W. Love, the Chairman of BIO, Julie Gerberding, CEO of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) and California State Senator Josh Becker.The esteemed group of executives have a multifaceted, dynamic discussion about the general public’s perception of the life sciences industry today, the need to increase general awareness of the industry’s positive activities in local communities, the importance of actively connecting with all levels of government, as well the impactful actions that organizations like Life Science Cares are doing both locally and nationally.

Earlier this year, Life Science Cares Boston presented its first ever Impact Award to the individuals and companies who best exemplify the mission and goals of LSC. In the inaugural episode of Moving Forward, Giving Back, host and Life Science Cares President Sarah MacDonald chats with some of the 2023 award winners including Halloran Consulting, Third Rock Ventures and several other industry leaders about the creative and impactful ways they have deployed the LSC model to harness andmaximize the industry’s resources to support community-based efforts in Greater Boston and beyond. To conclude the first episode of MovingForward, Giving Back, Dr. Yvonne Spicer, the Executive Director of LSC Boston, who joined the organization earlier this year, talks with Sarah about how she plans to leverage her extensive background in education, community advocacy and government to activate the financial and human capital of the life sciences industry to disrupt the cycle of poverty and inequality in the Boston area.

Welcome everybody to the Moving Forward, Giving Back podcast. A conversation about the importance of corporate philanthropy as an engineer of social change within the life science industry. Moving Forward, Giving Back is brought to you by Life Science Cares, an organization committed to leveraging the deep resources and power of the life science industry to address important social issues in those communities where they operate. Moving Forward, Giving Back is hosted by Sarah MacDonald and Rob Perez of Life Science Cares. To learn more go to lifesciencecares.org.