Mauro Alini receives TERMIS-EU Career Achievement Award

Mauro Alini, vice director of the AO Research Institute Davos (ARI), was honored with a Career Achievement Award at the 2023 Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS)-EU Conference in Manchester, England, on March 29, 2023. This prestigious award recognizes Alini's long-term, landmark contributions to the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine field—work he has carried forward at ARI for over twenty years.

The award conveys significant value for Alini: "It makes me consider that what I did in my career has some meaning, some legacy." There is no doubt about this, as Alini has published 330 papers and 14 book chapters, registered 7 patents, and grown a lab at ARI from a team of 3 scientists to what is now a team of 60 scientists focused on cartilage, bone, and intervertebral disc tissue engineering. Alini's dynamic career has been recognized through awards, invited lectures, and his association with multiple international orthopedic research societies. He continues to deliver leading orthopedic research through his work with ARI, as Editor-in-Chief of JOR Spine, and as an editorial board member of multiple journals, including the eCM Journal.

Mauro Alini (center) receives his TERMIS-EU Career Achievement Award, Manchester, England, March 29, 2023; also pictured are TERMIS award recipients Michael Monaghan (Early Career Investigator Award) and Daniel Kelly (Mid Term Career Award)

Collaborative, inclusive leadership supporting young scientists

The TERMIS-EU award also recognizes Alini's collaborative leadership, a major facet of ARI's inclusive research approach. "It's important to recognize the young scientists," Alini remarked. "You need to recognize the PI [principal investigator], the mid-career people doing the real hands-on laboratory work and the support staff." This approach is also an essential aspect of TERMIS' emphasis on mentorship and the society's multi-generational composition, which now places a high value on having a student presence at the board level. 

In honor of Alini's TERMIS Career Achievement Award, he was invited to give a plenary lecture to the annual conference's 1,000-plus attendees. Alini said his goal is to share the difficulty and success he has experienced throughout his career with a younger generation of scientists. He wants to communicate "the cycle of hope and frustration as a scientist."

Alini's next chapter

At the end of summer 2023, Alini will retire from his full-time position with ARI to begin preparing for what he calls "the third cycle of life." But we don't expect this to be a quiet period for Alini, as he will remain a presence at ARI, where he will continue his mentorship, networking, and advisory work while chasing new pursuits. "I want to write a novel," Alini said, "and for sure I will help—finally—my wife to do gardening and maintenance of our houses."

Peer tributes

Dr Sibylle Grad:

When I started working with Mauro in summer 2000, I was new in the field of orthopedic research. I am extremely grateful that Mauro opened for me his extensive network of scientists, which was the essential basis of my past, current, and future work. Mauro has great visions and is always prepared to realize them. 

 

Prof Martin Stoddart:

I started working with Mauro in 2006. I quickly realized that national and international collaboration is key to a successful career. That spirit of openness and inclusivity is one that persists, and the program is involved in multiple collaborative research consortia, with partners all over the globe.

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