OUR PURPOSE PIONEERING SCIENCE REPORTING 105 BIOGEN 2021 YEAR IN REVIEW PATIENTS OUR PEOPLE SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY 20 YEARS OF SERVING HUMANITY ENVIRONMENT COMMUNITY FEATURE Meaningful impact, lasting memories Some things are just worth coming back to. Jorge Sanchez-Salazar, a scientist with Biogen in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has worked with Biogen during different periods of his career since he got his start with the company in 1999. Recently, he’s returned to the company not only because of his fondness for the people here, but also because of his memorable past experiences – in particular with the Community Lab. He had heard about the Community Lab in 2002 through fellow employees who were involved in the program. Spurred by his desire to bring science education to kids, Jorge began volunteering as a mentor for Somerville high school students, assisting them with their science fair projects. Jorge distinctly remembers his first mentoring experience with a student who wanted to determine if the cornmeal in her muffin mix was genetically modified. He helped her outline the project; create an experiment timeline; obtain a genetically modified organism test kit; perform the experiment on the mix and other forms of corn; and analyze the data. Delighted with the experience and the student’s enthusiasm, Jorge went on to help many others develop their projects and realize the wonders of science. As an advocate for STEM education, Jorge was thankful for Biogen’s support of the Community Lab. “Having a solid science background allows students to make informed decisions, which makes them better citizens. That’s why I liked being involved in the Community Lab.” Jorge Sanchez-Salazar, seen here volunteering at Community Lab in the late 2000s, raves about his past involvement with the program. Biogen Community Lab: Celebrating 20 years of innovation & impact Biogen’s Community Lab, now the longest-running hands-on corporate science community lab in the U.S., started 20 years ago with a simple mission: to ignite and foster a love of science in students all over the world. Since we opened the doors to the first Community Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2002, hosting two one-week sessions with 50 students, extracting DNA from living cells, the Community Lab has reached more than 61,295 students in 19 countries, opening their eyes to the excitement and possibilities of careers in science. The Community Lab is composed of several state-of-the-art hybrid facilities that engage students in biotechnology experiments and interactions with scientists and other biotech professionals. We focus on recruiting students from backgrounds that are historically underrepresented in science and introducing them to the wide array of career options in the biotechnology industry. Our intention from the start was to broaden our reach and expose even more students to the fun of learning science. In 2014, we made good on that intention and expanded Community Lab from Cambridge to our facilities in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, to bring in- person science education to students in the state. And more recently, we brought the Community Lab to new international locations and launched a Virtual Summer Lab with MIT to widen our impact. In 2021, we built renewed momentum and drove global expansion for the Community Lab as we developed and implemented three “Biogen-MIT Biotech in Action” programs with MIT, focusing on Alzheimer’s Disease and enrolling students from across the globe. We also continued collaborations with Lemelson-MIT, Kenan Fellows and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to offer professional development opportunities to teachers around the world. MAKEUP OF the 2021 Student Population of the Community Lab and Lemelson-MIT’s Biotech in Action Program 12% International 50% Low-Income 34% Historically Underrepresented in STEM 59% Female or Non-Binary