Although liposomology is expanding with several human pharmaceutical products on the market and a host of products maturing in the clinical trials process, it is still true that the field continues to struggle to receive its due attention among more broad-based organizations, meetings, and publications. This very journal was formed, in part, to address this issue by providing a publication forum dedicated to lipid and liposome research. We have worked hard to gain a listing in Current Contents and Pub Med/MedLine, form an experienced Editorial Board and maintain our exclusivity, now in its ninth year, as the only journal dedicated to liposome research.
Despite the success it has achieved, and the significant contributions of its Publisher and Editorial Board, this journal, too, struggles against its own anonymity and lack of a solid subscriber and contributor base. The Journal would benefit from improvements in areas such as distribution, institutional subscriptions, profile, impact factor, and, to some extent, increased quality of its original papers.
Often a vibrant professional organization assists in addressing many of the concerns our Journal and field is currently battling.
The International Liposome Society was formed in 2000 and began recruiting members at the 2001 Liposome Advances Conference in London. The vision was for ILS to become the professional organization for lipid and liposome research professionals around the world. The functions of ILS were to be those of other successful organizations, including sponsoring conferences and education programs, publishing a journal and newsletters and establishing websites and committees/working groups to address particular issues and the needs of its members.
The International Liposome Society has achieved some notable goals, but there is still more that must be done before the ILS can be considered truly successful. To achieve this, the ILS is planning to re-organize to become significantly more active in 2004 and beyond.
The ILS Board of Directors is seeking the support of a management company to increase the efficiency of its officers' work regarding society management issues to ensure timely and effective implementation of ILS objectives, and to maximize leadership focus on ILS's strategic goals and scientific aims.
I have recently approached Malachite Management Inc. (“MMI”) to explore how they might assist in developing the ILS into a vibrant, active, professional organization. After preliminary analysis of the size of the sector, the maturity of the research, the products in or imminently coming into the market, and the established organizational structure already in place, MMI has given me their commitment to investing in the ILS in order to develop the organization and manage its ongoing operations and growth.
Operating since 1992, MMI offers proven organization management, conference management and consulting services to national and international health and medical professional societies. MMI has an outstanding performance record, with clients enjoying consistent year-to-year increases in membership, member satisfaction, committee participation, sponsorship support and loyalty, meeting attendance and profitability.
As a pre-requisite to moving forward, ILS will need to formalize its relationship with Marcel Dekker, Inc. the owner/publisher of this Journal. While JLR has been identified as the “Official Journal of the International Liposome Society”, there has been little definition of that relationship. We are pleased to announce that Dekker and ILS are now very close to signing a multi-year agreement, which outlines the obligations of, and benefits to, both ILS and Dekker with respect to the Journal. This agreement will be the result of much hard work on both sides.
The formal kickoff of the “new” ILS will be launched at this year's conference to be held December 2003 in London, UK. Beginning January 2004, MMI will work with ILS to develop operational bylaws and, over time, implement the following ILS programs:
Various membership plans/rates (corporate, individual, trainee, etc);
Establishment of committees/working groups around critical issues/needs;
ILS website with membership information and online forms, research news, links, and information on meetings, the journal, committees, etc;
Quarterly digital newsletter;
Elected leaders and biennial elections;
Regular membership & editorial board communications;
Regular directors and committee meetings;
Increased conference promotion;
Solicitation of corporate support, membership, advertising, sponsorship, etc.
We expect a strong, vibrant society to assist this Journal in a number of ways including:
increasing the subscriber base (individual and institutional);
enhancing the Journal's profile through ILS communications, profile, and marketing;
strengthening the Journal's fiscal base through corporate support (advertising, reprint orders, etc); and
raising the Journal's impact factor as the subscriber base grows, the number and quality of submissions strengthens, and the profile/awareness of the Journal builds.
How will the field of liposome research benefit from ILS?
Researchers (academic & industry), suppliers, clinicians, etc will be provided a forum in which they can interact with each other and a portal through which they can interact with other organizations and the wider scientific community;
Regular communications will quicken and strengthen the awareness of liposome research within the ILS community and outside it.
An organization representing the interests of liposome research can coordinate and enhance funding opportunities; coordinate and enhance interactions with regulatory agencies; and coordinate multi-stakeholder responses to critical issues.
New and strengthened programs and publications dedicated to liposome research will assist members in sharing results of their research among themselves and the broader scientific community.
Why another society? Liposome research deserves an organization dedicated to its cause. The aim, however, will not be to build a private club focusing inward, but rather a forum which will coordinate liposome research in focusing outward to the broader scientific community – to funding agencies, investors and scientists and clinicians from other disciplines.
Andrew S. Janoff
Editor-in-Chief