LATEST NEWS » Membership

Thank you to everyone who voted in this year’s Council election. We are pleased to welcome Anne Charmantier (President Elect), Howard Rundle (Executive Vice President), Michael Whitlock (North American Vice President), and Councilors Danielle Edwards, Amber Rice, and Katie Wagner. We’d also like to welcome Robin Tinghitella, who joined Council earlier this year. 

Thank you to our outgoing Council members, whose terms end at the end of this month: Lynda Delph (Past President), Andrea Case (Executive Vice President), Leonie Moyle (North American Vice President, and Councilors Joel McGlothlin and Nicole Valenzuela. 

The 2022 Council Election is now open!
SSE members should have received an email with a link to the ballot. Positions turning over this year: President-Elect, Executive Vice President, North American Vice President, and 3 Councilors. Newly elected councilors will start their terms January 1, 2023. Voting ends November 4! 

In 2018, SSE announced a tri-society initiative to develop a Code of Ethics for SSE, the Society of Systematic Biologists, and the American Society of Naturalists. While behavior at the annual Evolution meeting falls under a Code of Conduct, the societies currently have no policies regarding conduct outside the meeting. Adopting Codes of Ethics will allow the societies to establish explicit standards of excellence and a transparent process for upholding these standards, and in so doing, foster societies that are welcoming for everyone. The three societies have now each drafted their own Codes of Ethics, which have been approved by the Councils of each society. Before each Code is put into place, we are seeking our members’ feedback and approval. 

We invite you to visit the Code of Ethics website, review the standards of conduct and processes for enforcement, ask any questions you may have, and give your feedback before March 7, 2022. Thank you for your participation!

This award offers free two-year SSE memberships to 100 individuals of any career stage who identify as racial or ethnic minorities, either in their country of origin or their country of residence. This initiative is part of SSE Council’s 2020 commitment to actions to increase inclusion of and support for members of historically excluded groups, particularly individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC), in all of the society’s activities and programs, and in evolutionary biology as a whole.

Learn more and apply here. 

SSE is pleased to announce the new Membership Award, which offers free two-year SSE memberships to 100 individuals of any career stage who identify as racial or ethnic minorities, either in their country of origin or their country of residence. This initiative is part of SSE Council’s 2020 commitment to actions to increase inclusion of and support for members of historically excluded groups, particularly individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC), in the field of evolutionary biology and through all of the society’s activities and programs. Learn more and apply here. 

SSE leadership has been engaged in discussions focusing on increasing inclusion of and support for members of historically excluded groups, particularly individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC), in the field of evolutionary biology and through all of the activities of the SSE. 

This fall, Council will conduct a thorough review of the discretionary budget¹, which includes everything except SSE’s operating and publishing costs, with the goal of allocating half of this spending to support efforts to address racial inequities and alleviate past injustices. The Diversity Committee has worked thoughtfully to develop proposals for action, including the following plans as first steps, which Council approved for the coming year:

• Assess existing SSE programs for impacts on diversity, equity, and inclusion


• Collect demographic data on SSE membership to assess representation of historically excluded groups and international members


• Offer 100 free SSE membership awards to BIPOC scientists at any career stage 


• Begin a series of roundtable discussions with evolutionary biologists from historically excluded groups to identify the ways in which scientific societies can best serve them


• Hire a Diversity Consultant to inform the further development of a long-term strategic plan utilizing input from the roundtable series 


• Amend criteria for grants and awards to specifically include aspects of scientific excellence that build community (e.g. mentoring, pedagogy, or DEI work) 


• SSE representation at the SACNAS and ABRCMS annual meetings to better reach members of groups historically excluded from evolutionary biology


• Increase representation on Council and editorial boards by calling for nominations annually, encouraging self-nominations, advertising regularly, and requesting diversity, inclusion, and equity impact statements from all nominees

In addition, SSE will be jointly writing, with our sister societies the American Society of Naturalists and the Society of Systematic Biologists, a proposal to the NSF to fund programs we are developing to support underrepresented undergraduate students in evolutionary biology. Stay tuned for more information about specific programs and initiatives and how you can participate. We welcome feedback and ideas via communications@evolutionsociety.org or diversity@evolutionsociety.org. Learn more about the mission and activities of the Diversity Committee here.

The SSE Code of Ethics Committee has been working hard since its inception in 2019 to develop a Code of Ethics, which Council recently voted in favor of adopting. The Code of Ethics is a set of ethical standards for SSE members that reflects the Society’s mission, values, and goals, as well as procedures for initiating and responding to complaints regarding violations of the Code of Ethics. In this work, it has drawn on codes of ethics of other scientific societies, as well as advisory documents from the Societies Consortium on Sexual Harassment In STEMM. A key next step this fall/winter will be an open comment period for member input. Once we have received and responded to member input, the Code of Ethics will be presented to the membership for approval. Thanks to the SSE Code of Ethics committee for their hard work: Amy Angert, Chris Caruso, Vince Formica, Isabel Gordo, and Mark Rausher.

Save the date for the elections of SSE Council. The ballot and candidate statements will be posted in early November, and voting will close November 25. Voting will take place via the SSE website. Members will vote for the following positions: SSE President Elect, North American Vice President, Secretary, and two Councilors. 

Are you interested in serving on the SSE Council or the Evolution editorial board in the future? The SSE Nominating Committee seeks nominations (including self-nominations) on an ongoing basis. The next available SSE Council positions begin in 2022. Nominations submitted by March 1 will receive full consideration for that election cycle. The next slate of Evolution Associate Editor positions begin in 2021. Nominations submitted by July 1 will receive full consideration for that year's positions. For all Council and editorial board positions, SSE seeks a diversity of people and ideas, as well as participation by individuals committed to increasing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in science. Learn more and submit a nomination here.

The Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE) is excited to announce a new Global Membership Assistance (GMA) Program that greatly expands the number of countries that are eligible. This program offers free or discounted membership to students, researchers, and educators in 140 countries and territories around the world. Learn more on the SSE Membership page.

To learn more about SSE’s efforts to make the Society more welcoming for international members, visit the SSE International Committee page.

Congratulations to all the SSE officers elected in the 2020 election! On January 1, the current SSE Council will be joined by Lynda Delph as President-Elect, Andrea Case as returning Executive Vice President, Ophelie Ronce as Vice President, and Joel McGlothlin and Nicole Valenzuela as Councilors. We are pleased to announce the proposal to create a new Treasurer position passed. We welcome Chris Caruso as our newly elected Treasurer! We also welcome new GSAC President-Elect Elizabeth Carlen and GSAC members Catherine Chen and Erin Giglio.

We extend a heartfelt thank you to our Council members who are rotating off: Hopi Hoekstra as Past President, Tracey Chapman as Vice President, Jodie Wiggins as GSAC Past Chair, Daniel Matute and Trisha Wittkopp as Councilors, and José Cerca and Melissa Plakke as GSAC members. We would also like to voice our appreciation for the Evolution Associate Editors who are rotating off. Thank you all for your hard work on behalf of the Society!

SSE elections are now open through November 27! All members should have received an email with a link to the 2020 candidates' statements and the ballot. Members have the opportunity to vote for the 2020 President-Elect, Executive Vice President, Non-North American Vice President, and two Councillors. The ballot also includes a proposed Constitutional amendment to create a new position of Treasurer and a candidate for that position if the amendment passes. Cast your vote today!

It’s election season again! This year we’ll be voting in a new President-Elect, the Non-North American Vice President, and two new Councilors. Candidate statements will be posted soon on the website, with polls opening in early November. Please join me in thanking our outgoing officers for their hard work and dedication: Past President Hopi Hoekstra, Non-North American VP Tracey Chapman, and Councilors Daniel Matute and Trisha Wittkopp. A big thank you also to our Nominating Committee, Marc Johnson, Anne Charmantier, and Annie Schmitt for their work selecting the new candidates. 

The 2020 SSE Council Ballot will include a proposed amendment of the Constitution to create a new position of Treasurer. Members will be able to vote on this proposal during the 2020 SSE Council election in November 2019.

Unlike most professional societies, the SSE has Constitution that do not define a position of Treasurer. Instead, the Bylaws specify that the Executive Vice President (EVP) is “responsible for the administration, management and operation of the Society” (SSE Bylaws, Article 3).  

In 2017, SSE Council voted to significantly expand its activities and programs, at which point the duties of the EVP became unmanageable for one person.

SSE Council proposes the creation of a separate office of Treasurer to begin January 2020. This proposal requires amendments to the Constitution and approval by a majority of votes submitted by members via ballots (SSE Constitution, Article 7). The text of the proposed amendments can be found here.

In November 2019, SSE members will receive an email ballot requesting a vote on the establishment of a Treasurer for the Society along with their preferences for candidates of other elected offices.

The Treasurer, like the EVP and the Secretary, will normally serve a three-year term. However, in order to avoid coincident turnover in these positions, the term for the first treasurer will be two years (i.e., Jan 2020–Dec 2021); each subsequent term will last three years.  

Proposed responsibilities of the SSE Treasurer

The Treasurer shall manage financial records for the society. The term will be three years with the possibility of re-election to the position. Stipend will be set at $10K per year.

Duties will include the following: 

1. Coordinate with EVP in planning the annual budget and serve as a member of the SSE Finance Committee
2. Monitor and assess annual income and expenditures in relation to the budget
3. Coordinate payment of all invoices, grants, prizes, awards, stipends and reimbursements and keep all receipts related to reimbursements
4. Coordinate with investment advisor regarding the management of the investment accounts
5. Coordinate with tax accountants and the financial manager for filing of appropriate annual tax information
6. Present Treasurer's reports to Council at annual and mid-year council meetings

We welcome your questions and comments on this proposal. To make your voice heard, please leave a comment here. SSE members must sign in to make a comment. 

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our first honorary lifetime members, 2018 Nobel Laureates Dr. Frances Arnold, Sir Gregory Winter, and Dr. George Smith. They shared the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their pioneering work in directed evolution. You can read an article highlighting this award and its significance for evolutionary biology here.

As part of our ongoing efforts to grow and reflect our nature as an international society, SSE now offers free or 50% reduced SSE membership fees to researchers from lower-income countries through the Global Membership Assistance (GMA) scheme. This replaces the previous “Developing Nation” discounted membership. Please help spread the word and invite your non-member colleagues in these lower-income countries to consider taking advantage of this new program! Learn more here.

One week left to vote in the SSE Election! Members will vote in a new President Elect, North American VP, and two new Councilors. Check your email for the link to candidates' statements and the ballot. Polls close November 25.

SSE Elections are now open! Members will vote in a new President Elect, North American VP, and 2 new Councilors. Check your email for a link to the candidates' statements and ballot. Polls close November 25.

It’s election season again! This year we’ll be voting in a new President-Elect, the North American Vice President, and two new Councilors. Candidate statements will be posted soon on the website, with polls opening in early November. Please join me in thanking our outgoing officers for their hard work and dedication: Past President Sally Otto, North American VP Jenny Boughman, and Councilors Susan Alberts and Becky Fuller. A big thank you also to our Nominating Committee, Norman Johnson, Marc Johnson, and Anne Charmantier for their work selecting the new candidates.

As part of our ongoing efforts to grow and reflect our nature as an international society, we are pleased to announce the launch of a new Global Membership Assistance (GMA) scheme, which will offer free or 50% reduced SSE membership fees to researchers from lower-income countries. This will replace the previous “Developing Nation” discounted membership. Please help spread the word and invite your non-member colleagues in these lower-income countries to consider taking advantage of this new program! Learn more here.

February is your last chance to get an SSE lifetime membership for $800—a bargain at the equivalent of 16 years of regular membership! Starting March 1, the lifetime rate will be $1000, corrected to meet a stipulation in the SSE Constitution that the lifetime rate be 20 times the regular yearly rate. (You can read the full Constitution and Bylaws here.) To become a lifetime member of SSE, please visit https://payments.evolutionsociety.org/joinsse/. 

It's the beginning of the academic year for many of you. Time to usher in new students into our evolution community. Did you know that you can give gift memberships to students for just $10? You can! This is a great way to introduce students to the Society for the first time. Gift memberships can also be purchased for colleagues in developing nations at the same low rate of $10. Visit https://payments.evolutionsociety.org/joinsse/ to give a gift membership today.

SSE members receive substantial discounts on publication rates for Evolution (40% off OnlineOpen rates) and Evolution Letters (28% off for SSE members, 30% off for members of both SSE and ESEB). The codes to use to claim these discounts, as well as others, can be found by logging into evolutionsociety.org (click the green Log In button in the top right corner).

Register now for the American Institute of Biological Sciences Communications Boot Camp in October!

SSE members get $55 off registration - email communciations@evolutionsociety.org before registering in order to claim this discount.

Learn more and register here.