The Native Scientist side of Edith Heard
Author: Rafael Galupa
Last year I decided to start featuring scientists whose lives and careers are well aligned with values that I stand for, such as diversity, altruism, integrity, curiosity — especially in the context of Native Scientist, a network I am part of, which connects international migrant scientists and pupils that share the same heritage language. I previously wrote about Marie Curie, who seemed an obvious choice to start this series. This time, though, I wanted someone contemporary. We often pay homage to people only when they are gone, and I think it is important to also pay tribute to admirable people while they are alive. On the one hand, they deserve to know; on the other hand, living role models can be more relatable, as often their achievements as well as their struggles will feel more “real” to us than those of someone who lived a long time ago. So this time I chose to feature Edith Heard, the current Director General of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and recently awarded the L’Oréal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science.
We can actually draw many parallels between Edith Heard and Marie Curie: both leading scientists in their fields, both female role models in science, both French citizens born somewhere else — and in 2001 Edith established her own lab in the institute founded by Marie Curie 90 years before. That’s how my path crossed with Edith’s: I first heard about her research while doing an internship at the Institut Curie, and later I joined her lab to do my PhD. The choice to write about Edith is therefore not random. I hope that you will agree that Edith embodies the recognition of education, science and diversity as pillars to a better and more just world.
The importance of ignorance and patience in science
From an early age, Edith was interested in mathematics and music, and she came across biology only at university:
“This lack of knowledge in biology I think has been my greatest strength. When I went to Cambridge and had to do biology for the first time, I felt — I mean I was — totally ignorant. I’d never dissected a horse chestnut leaf or a bulls’ eye or anything: I knew nothing, and that feeling hasn’t gone away! I can still feel very fundamentally ignorant when it comes to aspects of biology. Obviously I’ve learnt a bit, but I think it’s why I’ve never been shy about asking questions, or saying that I don’t know.” (Interview for the Academy of Medical Sciences.)
This “late” discovery has nevertheless yielded many fruits. After doing her PhD in cancer genetics in London, she moved to Paris for a postdoc at the Institut Pasteur, where she found her long-lasting scientific passion: X-chromosome inactivation, a process that occurs during the development of female mammals and renders one of their two X chromosomes completely silenced. Upon starting her own lab, Edith went on to make several seminal discoveries in this topic, which have provided fundamental insights into various fields, such as epigenetics and chromosome biology, leading her to win numerous awards. Sometimes, though, one has to be very patient:
“At the end of my postdoc, I had a collection of experiments with transgenes that all failed to recapitulate random X-inactivation, and we couldn’t really understand why. It was quite frustrating, but we simply didn’t have the means to pursue that further. I had to wait almost twenty years to have my answers — when we discovered topologically-associating domains (TADs), a level of organisation of our genomes important for gene regulation, then suddenly it all made sense why those transgenes never worked. Parts of those TADs were missing in the transgenes so it wasn’t surprising anymore that they hadn’t worked!” (Free translation and adaptation from Savoir, penser, rêver — Les leçons de vie de 12 grands scientifiques.)
A European at heart
Edith was born in London to a Greek mother and a British father. Her first language was Greek, and she actually didn’t speak any English until she was five! Destiny would also add fluency in French to her language repertoire — while studying in Cambridge, Edith met her lifelong partner, a French scientist, and eventually moved to Paris at the end of her PhD, where she has lived ever since for most of the time. Edith considers herself a European (as stated in this video or in this interview) and recent events in European history, such as the financial crisis in Greece or Brexit, propelled her to accept the position as Director General of EMBL, an independent and intergovernmental European organisation set up in 1974 to support European research and keep scientists on European soil; it currently includes 29 countries.
“I’d spent several months complaining bitterly to anyone who would listen about the impact of Brexit on science, the problems with funding basic research and so on — I was becoming a bit of a whinger. It also happened that I was about to step down as Director of my unit at the Curie; I was looking forward to focusing only on my lab, and really wasn’t looking at all for another position as a director of something. But the Director General of EMBL is not just any old job and EMBL is not just any old organisation — it represents a model for European science. (…) I thought that, rather than complaining about everything, I should take the opportunity to do something positive!” (Interview for Development.)
A role model for women and men in science
Something else convinced Edith to become the first female director of EMBL: the simple fact that she is a woman, and therefore felt that she could not decline the invitation. Edith started seeing more problems as she gained more responsibilities:
“I would go to meetings and notice that I was the only woman in the room. That’s when I started to realise all the clichés are true — you sometimes have to talk twice as loudly to get heard, to keep repeating yourself to make your point. I do think things are changing for the better, but I realise that a lot of young women still shy away from science.” (Interview for Development.)
The gender gap in science is still far from being resolved (articles and reflections on this in PLOS Biology, Science and BBC News). In the epigenetics field, in which Edith is one of the scientific leaders, and in particular the field of X-chromosome inactivation, there is no shortage of female role models. At the Institut Curie, where Edith led the department of Developmental Biology and Genetics for ten years, Marie Curie’s legacy on training female scientists is still felt — the proportion of male and female group leaders fluctuates around 50:50. She never took measures specifically targeting gender parity — but by having an inclusive and supportive environment, it followed that men and women have been hired in similar proportions.
“I think that very subtle things can help improve gender balance: giving the right encouraging signs, dealing with issues around partners and kids, convincing women (who can often be more insecure) that they can go for that next position or whatever. Everyone needs someone to give them a nudge sometimes to help them succeed.” (Interview for Development.)
And how does Edith define success? “You can define success by how much you’ve allowed a new generation of science to happen.” (Interview for The New York Times.) From Edith’s lab, PhD students and postdocs have continued their careers to create their own labs across Europe, in Basel, Berlin, Copenhagen, Lisbon, Paris or San Francisco.
“Female students and postdocs in my lab often ask me how I did it — how do I deal with kids and work and so on? I tell them not to spend too much time thinking or calculating, just do what you feel is right and you’ll find a way. Actually, I find that women (including myself!) become even more efficient in the lab after they have kids. But honestly, I never calculated my career or my life, I just took the path that felt right, for my science and for my personal life. So I guess this is the kind of role model I want to be — to prove that you don’t need to think through every step but go where your heart takes you.” (Interview for Development.)
Edith’s consciousness for diversity issues is not restricted to gender — just last June, she became the first Director General ever to raise the Progress Pride flag at EMBL. This flag combines the LGBTQ+ rainbow flag with the transgender pride flag (white, pink, and light blue), and brown and black stripes representing marginalised communities. Symbolic gestures that show us that change is possible and on the way.
Spreading knowledge and supporting disadvantaged scientists
In 2012, Edith was appointed Professor at the Collège de France. This institution, not well known outside of France, is considered the apex of the French academic world, and has existed since 1574 with the intent of connecting scientific experts and the “grand publique”. Once a year, each Professor holding a chair — from Anthropology, to Ancient History, to Oceanography or Edith’s Epigenetics and Cellular Memory — prepares a series of lectures on a new topic and presents it in an accessible manner to whoever is interested in listening; in French, of course, the native language of the public.
Edith decided to take this mission even further — inspired by her parents, who hosted other families in exile during the 1970s, and instigated by her own daughter, she co-created the PAUSE programme, which helps scientists at risk in crisis zones across the globe, fleeing their countries to staysafe and/or conduct research in freedom.
“I have an international culture and have worked almost all my life in France without anyone ever asking any questions. I am also a scientist — a profession where you travel the world and collaborate with people of all nationalities. I find it hard to accept that my colleagues may no longer have this freedom.” (Interview for CNRS News.)
I find it admirable that Edith finds time to get involved in so many different initiatives, especially considering everything else that she must have on her plate. Surely, a lesson for us all: there should always be time to spend on the right causes.
“When I read [their] proposals, it’s incredible: you see how a human life can be totally transformed or destroyed from one day to the next. In addition to the destruction of science by wars, in some countries people who sign a petition, or speak openly about politics, can be arrested or chased out of their universities. They have to pack up their labs and families, and move elsewhere, leaving their science behind. Partly through this work, I’ve realised that I really care about freedom, and I’m really interested in people. And right now, there’s a lot to do.” (Interview for Development.)
In this spirit, it is therefore not surprising that Edith always supported me in my endeavours of science outreach, even when that meant taking some time away from the lab. She also encouraged me to present the Native Scientist project at our department seminar series — which led Italian, Polish and Syrian colleagues to start coordinating school workshops in their own languages as well. The department headed by Edith at the Institut Curie was indeed an environment where people felt inspired and at ease to dedicate themselves to projects beyond what is considered the “normal activities” of a scientist. It is for all these reasons that I felt that it made perfect sense to feature Edith in a series dedicated to the values of diversity — in science, in culture, in language and in education.
About the author: Rafael completed his PhD at the Institut Curie, in Paris, and is now a postdoctoral fellow at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, in Heidelberg. He is genetically engineering flies to understand the complex networks of genes that govern embryonic development. When not in the lab, Rafael is happy being with family and friends, with a book or amid wildlife — all the better if all combined. Apart from his involvement with Native Scientist, he has recently founded Cartas com Ciência, a letter exchange programme between Portuguese-speaking scientists and students in Portuguese-speaking countries.
About Native Scientist: Native Scientist is an award-winning European-wide non-profit organisation that promotes cultural diversity in science, education and society. Native Scientist provides science and language workshops, science communication training, and bespoke projects for various institutions, including schools, universities and embassies. The work developed connects pupils with scientists to foster science and language literacy through role modelling and science and language integrated learning. Founded in 2013, their work reaches over 1,200 pupils a year and they count with a network of over 1,000 international scientists.
