With two weeks to go to the big “Ion Channels in Cancer” (INCA) conference, the pressure has definitely been put on. This conference happens biannually and is hosted in a different place every time. This year, Professor Djamgoz and his PCRF team are the hosts. The topic of Ion channels is an exciting new development in cancer which holds promise to enable early, definitive diagnosis and non-toxic therapies of cancer. The conference will bring together scientists at the forefront of this field in order to advance novel solutions to cancer. The meeting will include over 30 invited speakers from all over the world, with around 100 people expected to attend.
Because the charity prides itself on having no administrative costs, logistical organization up till now was largely down to Mustafa alone. With an estimated overall cost of £16K, my colleague and I found the email addresses of multiple research charities, science and technology companies, and scientific societies, and sent them personalized emails asking whether they could help us meet our balance. Whilst we preferred receiving direct monetary support, we also welcomed any supporting materials such as pens, notepads, sweets, or any other souvenirs that the delegates would receive in their conference goody bags. In return, we offered to include any publicity material in the conference pack.
I’ve had a very exciting week speaking with so many different people. I’ve been able to harness my communication and negotiation skills that I gained in my previous job as a telethon fundraiser for Imperial’s President Scholarship Fund and apply it to contacting these individual professionals. We were so excited to have our first contact offer £1000 in the first day of our fundraising. We’ve had many more positive responses and are building up a strong donation base.