Prof. Burtram Fielding is a Professor and Principal Investigator, Molecular Biology and Virology Research Laboratory, Department of Medical BioSciences, University of the Western Cape, South Africa, Dean Faculty of Natural Science, University the Western Cape, Dean-Elect Faculty of Science, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.
A proud UWC alum, he holds a BSc, Honours (cum laude) and PhD in Microbiology and Physiology from the university, and has also completed an MPhil in Management Coaching (cum laude) from the University of Stellenbosch Business School. He has worked as a Research Fellow in the Collaborative Antiviral Research Group at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Singapore from 2003 to 2006, where he studied the coronavirus (SARS-CoV) responsible for the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome.
His decades of work on coronaviruses have cemented his status as one of the foremost experts on SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa, and the world, and he has mentored several students whose work has advanced our understanding of the current pandemic.
What he has offered to the WSV?
- He acted as a Member of the Membership Review Committee WSV
- Participated in the WSV2023 in Latvia
Candidacy and Agenda 2024-2026
I have been in academia as a full time member of staff since 2001. I have served as Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation), Director of Research and, as from 2022 Dean: Faculty of Natural Sciences. All of these portfolios have allowed me to engage directly with national and international funders, as well as national and international government institutions and sectors. In my various portfolios, I have served as Chair or Member of Boards of various University Insitutes and Centers. My registration with the South African Insitute of Directors and the South African National Council for Professional Scientists provide me with unique board-related skills and it allows me access to cohorts of potential WSV members. Lastly, as a member of the South African Science Dean’s forum, I would be uniquely positioned to promote membership of WSV to other universities and sciences councils via the Deans of the resective institues. Lastly, my positions as Guest Editor for various journals would allow me to invite WSV members to serve as reviewers for submitted manuscripts. I believe this is a unique opportunity to develop emerging virologists, but it would also promote WSV indirectly (my email signature and journal bios would list my WSV affiliation).
As a member of the WSV board, I would have a duty of care when discussing decisions for the development and growth of WSV. Being a member of the board would mean that I will never use information gained through my position for personal gain, but I will act in the best interests of the WSV at all times. As a board member of WSV, I would be faithful to the WSV’s mission; this would entail working with other board members, and regular WSV members, to grow WSV membership numbers, build the reputation of WSV, develop and offer training courses, or negotiate access to established training courses when appropriate, to name a few.
The current pandemic, as well as the ongoing HIV problem, has once again highlighted the importance of networking and the sharing of ideas for Virologists. WSV is ideally placed to be the preeminent virology society to drive this important initiative. Based on the academic requirements for WSV board members, board members are typically ideally placed to approach national and international funding bodies directly to elicit financial support. As a board, we should be engaging with more funders and career skills developing bodies to approach WSV as the Virology Society of choice for advertising of calls. We should be negotiating reduced rates for WSV members signing up for any paid skills training workshops advertised and signed up on the WSV website. This type of agreement would be beneficial to both WSV and any service provider.
WSV shares the mission and vision of many other virology societies. Board members need to be in contact and engage with the Board members of these societies to work on common goals. Having been in academia since 2001, I have collaborated with many of these researchers and contacting them directly would be received well.
I have touched on some of my recruitment strategies in the above questions. In addition, we need to increase the WSV offering of free and/or reduced-cost training and development courses. One way of doing this would be to piggy back on courses offered by WSV members at their home institutions. Also, providing a database of, and for, WSV members to be used as a source for potential guest lecturers; the pandemic has shown that guest lecturers can now offer quality courses/training online/remotely – this is beneficial for the guest lecture, as well as for the host who will be able to diversify the teaching compliment for their courses/workshops. In my opinion, these types of opportunities would lead to an increased profile of WSV and attract more young or emerging virologists who would have many opportunities to develop as virologists.