| | | BBP Elections: we are looking for new candidates who would like to join the BBP steering team ‘25-’26!
BBP has an enthusiastic Steering Team guiding its activities, with each member bringing unique strengths. We have two open positions for the upcoming term and therefore we invite all members interested in contributing more actively to join us. If there are more candidates than positions, elections will be held in January 2025.
The Steering Team meets about 10 times a year, mostly online, to discuss developments in biosafety, and plan activities.
If you're interested and/or would like to know more, please email us at bbp.steeringteam@ebsaweb.be with your name and affiliation by December 13, 2024. If elections occur, a motivational letter will also be required.
| | | | BSOH & BBP Joint event, 6 December 2024, Haute Ecole HE2B (Anderlecht)
We will be delighted to welcome you to a seminar themed 'Biosafety and Occupational Hygiene: Cross Perspectives on Biological Risks' and jointly organized by the BBP and BSOH (Belgian Society of Occupational Hygiene). More information about this seminar can be found here. This seminar is free for members of BSOH and BBP! We kindly request that you register in a timely manner (registration deadline: 3 December). BBP members can register here. BSOH members can register here. Seminar fee is € 75 for non-members (membership until 31/12/2025 is included).
Biosafety officers and occupational hygienists provide complementary perspectives on managing these risks. What are their legal references? What are their approaches? What tools do they use? Several topics such as the identification of biological agents, risk analysis, and protective equipment are common and may be treated differently... in sectors and contexts that are very diverse!
During this seminar, we propose to alternate between topics presented by biosafety officers and occupational hygienists. The topics covered will be very diverse, including those that concern all of us, such as best practices for selecting and using protective gloves, as well as some surprising topics in less well-known sectors. The focus will be on the exchange of experiences, ideas, practices, and tools related to biological risks.
So, what can we learn from each other? By bringing together the knowledge and expertise of biosafety officers and occupational hygienists, we can foster a more comprehensive approach to managing biological risks. | | | | Biosafety training certificate, January – June 2025 to June, HE2B-ISIB (Brussels)
The Haute Ecole Bruxelles-Brabant (He2B), ISIB Industrial Engineering School, in partnership with the SBB, organizes a biosafety training certificate in French. This certificate is recognised by the Académie de Recherche de l'Enseignement supérieur (ARES). More info can be found here.
BBP workshop, 13 March 2025
We are planning a live BBP workshop on good laboratory practices on an exceptional location. We are still brainstorming behind the scenes, but we are already looking forward to sharing more details with you! | | | | Karen van der Meulen recognised with the Rosalind Franklin Society Award in Science | | | | Publisher Mary Ann Liebert Inc., in partnership with the Rosalind Franklin Society launched a prestigious annual award to recognize outstanding published peer-reviewed research by women and underrepresented minorities in science in each of the publisher’s peer-reviewed journals.
The BBP Steering Team is excited to share that Karen van der Meulen, our former BBP president and Senior Biosafety Manager at 3BIO, has received this award for her noteworthy contributions to the fields of viral replicons and biosafety. For more info, click here. Her research highlights the safe design and application of viral replicons, which play a vital role in the progress of vaccine development, gene therapy, and cancer treatment. She emphasizes the importance of biosafety in our rapidly evolving biotechnological landscape, stating it is ‘crucial for protecting researchers, the public, and the environment’. Congratulations from the BBP Steering Team! | | | | SBB Communication: Biological safety for diagnostics and research on the Marburg virus | | | | Given the recent outbreak of Marburg virus in Rwandaand the possibility of import cases of Marburg in Belgium, SBB has posted a communication as reminder that intentional manipulation under the contained use legislation is not permitted in Belgium (as currently no level 4 containment facilities are available). | | | | Contained use activities and clinical trials with GMOs in Belgium | | | | | |
