Sudip Parikh will join the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) as chief executive officer and executive publisher of the Science family of journals early next year.
On January 6, 2020, Parikh will succeed Alan I. Leshner, who is serving as interim CEO at AAAS and had previously led the organization from 2001 to 2015. Rush Holt then served as AAAS CEO until his retirement in September 2019.
Parikh, who currently serves as senior vice president of DIA (Drug Information Association) Global, will become the 19th chief executive of the 171-year-old nonprofit, non-partisan AAAS.
“In this extraordinary era of advances and challenges, science must be integral to decision-making at every policy table and kitchen table,” said Parikh. “I am committed to working with our diverse Board, staff and members to ensure AAAS is an essential modern leader at this pivotal moment, while ensuring that our mission would be fully recognizable to the visionaries in whose footsteps we follow.”
As its core mission, AAAS aims to “advance science, engineering, and innovation throughout the world for the benefit of all people.” The organization has extensive programs in policy analysis, diversifying the science and technology workforce, public engagement, science education and international affairs, along with publication of the Science family of journals.
“Sudip is well positioned to lead AAAS well into the future and brings significant expertise working across scientific, business and policy sectors in the United States and globally,” said Claire Fraser, president-elect of AAAS and chair of the search committee that selected Parikh. Fraser, professor and director of the Institute for Genome Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, noted that the search was extraordinarily thorough and involved close consideration of numerous qualified and diverse candidates.
Parikh comes to AAAS from DIA Global, a non-profit organization and publisher that mobilizes life science professionals from across all areas of expertise to engage with patients, peers and thought leaders. As managing director of DIA Americas, Parikh leads strategy and operations for the Americas region of the international association, overseeing effective non-partisan policy advocacy while growing membership. Prior to DIA, Parikh served in leadership roles at the multibillion-dollar global research and development organization Battelle, including vice president and general manager of health and consumer solutions and vice president of health policy.
Parikh also worked as science advisor and professional staff for the United States Senate Committee on Appropriations from 2001 to 2009, advising on discussions regarding appropriations and policy for federal research agencies and congressional oversight of federally-funded programs. He served as the committee’s liaison to science and technology industries, universities and institutions.
Parikh serves on the boards of Research!America and Friends of Cancer Research and on the programmatic consultation committee of the National Institutes of Health National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. He has received multiple awards for public service, including recognition from the American Association of Immunologists, the National AIDS Alliance, the Coalition for Health Services Research, and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
“Sudip Parikh is an exemplary leader,” said Mary Woolley, president and chief executive officer of Research!America. “In his role as a valued member of the Research!America board of directors, Sudip is highly respected for his multifaceted insight and understanding of the concerns facing the broad science and science stakeholder community. Sudip’s financial acumen, strategic thinking and policy expertise are highly valued. AAAS and the greater science community are fortunate to have attracted such a well-qualified leader.”
A past NIH Presidential Management Fellow, Parikh was also awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship while earning his Ph.D. in macromolecular structure and chemistry from Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. He received a bachelor’s degree in materials applied science from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
“We are excited by Sudip’s vision for how AAAS can continue to harness advances in science and technology for the benefit of the human condition,” said Margaret Hamburg, chair of the AAAS Board of Directors and foreign secretary of the National Academy of Medicine. “We’d also like to thank Alan Leshner for his continued service to the scientific community as interim CEO of AAAS and for facilitating this important leadership transition early next year.”
[Associated image credit: DIA Global]