After a hiatus, we are ecstatic to bring back the LGBTQ+ STEMinar this 6th of November 2026 to be held in person at Queen Mary University of London.

After a pause for the STEMinar, we are back! Please join us for a day of great lectures.

The conference is designed for people who work or study in STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and identify as LGBTQ+. We aim to use the day to showcase work from diverse fields and to encourage collaborations between different departments, Universities, companies and subjects. We also welcome those who may not identify as LGBT but wish to discover and support the work that LGBTQ+ people are doing.

Our plenary speakers for the LGBTQ+ STEMinar 2026 will be:

Alex is standing and smiling in a rain forest. He has a red backpack, blue t-shirt and his sunglasses are raised to be on top of his head.

Alex Bond (he/him)

Dr Alex Bond is the Principal Curator and Curator in Charge of Birds at the Natural History Museum, and co-lead of the Adrift Lab, a research collective that focuses on seabirds & marine plastics, and the conservation of island systems. An active researcher for more than 20 years, he has published 200 peer-reviewed articles, 9 book chapters, and 2 monographs as well as a children’s book about bird diversity. Since 2005, he has been fortunate enough to study and conserve birds in Canada, Alaska, Australia, Tristan da Cunha, the Pitcairn Islands, and elsewhere (as well as unexpectedly swim in four of the world’s five oceanic basins). As former chair of LGBTQ+STEM and passionate advocate for making a better place for marginalized scientists, he was awarded the 2020 Royal Society Athena Prize and the 2022 BTO Marsh Award for Ornithology. Since 2014, he has lived in the UK with his husband, Jeremy.

A picture of Priya Silverstein in a hilly background wearing blue glasses, a blue knitted cap, and a maroon and mustard hoodie. Priya is smiling.

Priya Silverstein (they/she)

Priya Silverstein is an Assistant Researcher on the EXCELScIOR project at the University of Coimbra. Their work falls into two main themes: research credibility (including replicability, reproducibility, and generalisability), and open science uptake (by students, researchers, and journal editors). They are a nonbinary, queer parent to two cats (Butter and Nut), and they experience queer joy through hiking, yoga, and cooking.

Registration, Contributed Talks, and Posters Submission

If you would like to attend the LGBTQ+ STEMinar, please register your participation by filling out this form.

We plan to have contributed oral presentations and a poster session. If you would like to give a short talk or present a poster, then please fill out this submission form.

Please note that all attendees must register and will be expected to abide by the LGBTQ+ STEMinar Code of Conduct.

Deadlines:

For contributed talks: 31 July 2026

For poster presentations: 31 July 2026

For conference participation: 6 October 2026

Organisational Team

The QMUL organisational team for the LGBTQ+ STEMinar 2026 is:

Ioanna Bechlivanidi (School of Biological and Behavioral Sciences)
Alex Fink (School of Mathematical Sciences)
Claudia Garetto (School of Mathematical Sciences)
Tyler Kelly (School of Mathematical Sciences)
Nadine Lavan (School of Biological and Behavioral Sciences)
Anthony Phillips (School of Physical and Chemical Sciences)
Charalampos Saitis (School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences)
Stefaan Verbruggen (School of Engineering and Material Sciences)

Questions / Contact?

If you have any questions or special requests regarding attending, please contact Ioanna Bechlivanidi and Nadine Lavan.

If you would like to sponsor the event, please contact Tyler Kelly.

If you have any questions about contributed talks or the poster session, please contact Stefaan Verbruggen.

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LGBTQ+ STEMinar 2026