September 21, 2023
From Sept. 3-9, 2023, numerous past and present members of the Wright Lab Relativistic Heavy-Ion Group (RHIG) joined over 700 scientists in Houston, Texas, for the 30th International Conference on Ultra-relativistic Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions, also known as Quark Matter 2023. Ten current members of RHIG presented their new experimental and phenomenological results through poster presentations or talks. This 30th-anniversary conference was a significant milestone for the heavy ion community, not only in terms of physics results but also for diversity and inclusion.
Thanks to the tremendous efforts of the Local Organizing Committee and International Advising Committee (including Wright Lab faculty Helen Caines, professor of physics, and John Harris, D. Allan Bromley Professor Emeritus of Physics; as well as many Yale/Wright Lab alumni), the conference achieved a record-breaking representation of gender minority speakers at 25%. This is the first time the percentage surpassed 20% at Quark Matter. Additionally, the organizers made a dedicated effort to have 100% female session chairs for the plenary sessions, and 35% of plenary speakers were women or non-binary (including new Wright Lab faculty member Prof. Laura Havener, asisstant professor of physics). The conference also provided free childcare onsite for participants, an enforceable code of conduct, a Diversity and Inclusion Committee, and a pre-conference Student Day Lecture series.
Finally, Caines delivered the conference summary talk at the end of the seven-day event. It was a historic occasion–the first time in 30 Quark Matters that a woman gave this important talk!
While there is always more work to be done, the past and present Yalies (seen cheering in the photo) and the heavy-ion community took a moment to celebrate and be proud of what can happen when you put in the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) work!
- by Laura Havener
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