Spotlight On: Mary Sekiya
My interest in Biology was sparked by investigating the ponds, trees and wildlife in the forest preserve near where I grew up. I am from Chicago which is well known for its skyscrapers. It is less well known that good city planning ensures that there is still plenty of green space.
I studied Biology at the University of Chicago. To earn some much-needed rent money, I worked as a student research assistant, thus beginning my career working in Biology labs. My first position was in a Neurobiology lab and then a Plant Molecular Biology lab. I found Plant Biology much more interesting and after receiving my bachelor’s degree, I went south to sunny Florida, studying for an MSc at the University of Florida in Gainesville, working on a viral disease of citrus trees.
The University of Florida had a surprisingly diverse graduate school. I met a lot of international students there including a random guy from Ireland, who turned out to be my future husband. Spoiler alert! This is how I ended up in Dublin. I went back up north to do my PhD, studying Plant Pathology at Cornell University. After completing my PhD, I worked as a postdoc in the Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, NY, on Agrobacterium tumefaciens, a causative agent of gall disease in grapevine.
During the height of the Celtic Tiger, we had the opportunity to move to Dublin. The late 1990s was likely a high point for Irish research funding, so work was relatively plentiful. My first job in Ireland was in Plant Pathology at UCD.
I then did a second postdoc at NUI Maynooth, working on plant transformation for expression of foreign proteins, so if you are counting, this is the 7th lab I worked in.
I went on to work at DCU with John Dalton, who had established a very productive working relationship with Grace Mulcahy, (UCD School of Veterinary Medicine) researching liver fluke biology and vaccine development. Shortly after I joined the group, John announced that he was moving to Australia, and the research group was divided. Several of us relocated to the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine and I am still here today. Having said that, my role has changed quite a bit over the years. Initially, I was involved in various research projects, primarily concerning liver fluke. Over time, I found myself becoming more of a Laboratory Manager.
I was appointed Chief Technical Officer in the School of Veterinary Medicine Pathobiology Section, (Microbiology & Parasitology) in 2018, which involved a very steep learning curve, but was also very enjoyable. And still is.
Around 2020, when Covid struck, Ana Vale (School of Veterinary Medicine) asked me if we could do something about sustainability in the research labs. My response was “what are you talking about?” Nevertheless, we investigated and decided that we should work towards the My Green Lab (MGL) certification, as a few research groups in UCD had already completed this programme and it seemed achievable. We approached the School's Associate Dean for Research, Innovation & Impact, Prof Simon More, who agreed to pay for the MGL costs (we achieved gold level certification in March 2023) and more importantly, challenged us to bring sustainability to a higher level in UCD.
Along with colleagues from the Research Office, UCD Green Campus, the Conway Institute, Lyons Farm, the School of Biology & Environmental Science and the School of Biomolecular & Biomedical Science in the College of Science, we formed the Sustainable Research Initiative (SRI). The group began with support from the College of Health & Agricultural Sciences, and shortly after this, the UCD Sustainability Unit was launched, under the direction of our new UCD VP for Sustainability, Prof Tasman Crowe. The SRI is now an affiliated group with the UCD Sustainability Unit.
The SRI is in its third year and we have made significant progress addressing waste management and recycling in laboratories, promoting supplier take back programmes, recycling of polystyrene boxes and the KimTech nitrile glove recycling programme. The group meets monthly during term and all are welcome to join us.
Recently, I have worked with members of the School of Veterinary Medicine to develop the School Sustainability Group. Niamh Nestor, Tristan Russell and I first met about 18 months ago with the goal of bringing a group of students and staff together to embed a culture of sustainability in our School. The School Sustainability Group meets monthly during term on the first Tuesday at 4pm - new members are always welcome, especially students of both Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Nursing.
I am pleased to announce that we will be hosting the first School of Veterinary Medicine Sustainability Workshop on 12 December, from 9am - 12pm. I look forward to this event and reporting on the progress of activities from both the School Sustainability Group and the SRI.