I have anticipated the start of 2021 and was looking forward to leaving 2020 where it belongs, in the past. I don’t really know what I was expecting, but I thought for sure I would wake up January 1, 2021 and things would be back to “normal”. Well, as we all know that didn't happen. But here we are at the beginning of 2021, a time for reflection and making a list of our New Year resolutions.

Years ago, I started a new habit of choosing a New Year word over a list of resolutions. I figured it was easier to make one word happen then a bunch of “things” on my list. This year my word is “change”. Change means to replace something with something else, and, in my case, I tend to think it is replacing with something better. It is a variation to the common way of doing things. Change is adapting to new environments and circumstances and being successful.

With change in mind for 2021, I wanted to highlight some exciting ones within our Association. The board virtually met in the Fall of 2020 and finalized our strategic vision which we will start implementing this month. Although this is not your traditional strategic plan, we have some exciting things to look forward to! For more details, see our Executive Director's article below.

In addition to our strategic plan, we have some new content for our 2021 Annual Meeting, which as of yesterday, was announced to be held entirely in a virtual setting again (details on that announcement can be found here). As you all are aware, we changed the symposia guidelines to become more relevant to our industry and provide better networking among our members. Make sure that you renewed your membership for 2020-2021 so that you receive updates about our Virtual 2021 Annual Meeting.

Even though my word is “change”, there are some things which do not change, and for this I am thankful. The Poultry Science Association continues to succeed in our mission and vision to be the world’s most respected resource for the poultry sciences. Thank you to everyone that contributed to our success. With that I will leave you with a favorite quote of mine:

– Author Unknown

Stay safe and healthy, and happy 2021!

The extended deadline to submit symposium proposals for consideration at the 2021 Latin American Scientific Conference is this Friday, January 15, 2021 at 11:59 PM CST.

A complete list of guidelines and supporting documents to help with your proposal are available on the PSA website.

The Poultry Science Association would like to extend its sincerest gratitude to the peer reviewers who served our journals in 2020. In a year defined by uncertainty, your contribution to the continuing function of Poultry Science^® and The Journal of Applied Poultry Research has been invaluable. The importance of communicating accurate scientific information has never been clearer, and you are an integral part of that.

The PSA Board has spent a good part of 2020 devising a new, 3-year Strategic Vision. For this vision, we decided to depart from the traditional strategic plan. It was determined that the traditional plans often go into exhausting detail, including specific action items or unobtainable metrics, only to be shelved and rarely looked at again. These plans are often ineffective check lists, that offer little to no fluidity throughout their lifetime. Instead, we decided to enlist the help of a facilitator, Dr. Ken Andrews, who guided us through creating a solid and thoughtful 30,000-foot view of the initiatives to be focused on, by the PSA Board and staff, in the next three years.

As you look at this, one-page, Strategic Vision you will note that it merely states the major initiatives to be focused on in the next three years. It does not indicate in any way how we will reach (or try to reach) these objectives. That is where the PSA Committees come in. Each PSA Committee will be charged with the discussion, planning and most importantly, providing action items for the PSA Board and staff, that support these initiatives. This will ensure we are continually thinking, engaging and most importantly remaining fluid in addressing the needs of PSA members. At the end of each year the PSA Board will report on progress towards our Strategic Vision.

PSA is now welcoming nominations for the 2021 PSA Awards cycle. Award recipients will be recognized at the Virtual 2021 PSA Annual Meeting.

Be sure to check out awards that are exclusive to odd years and available during this award cycle.

This summary highlights a paper looking at utilizing yeast cultures to combat mortality and boost goose health.

The summary also includes potential benefits for producers and how this research can be used going forward.

This review article from Poultry Science^® takes a dive into the effects hypoxia has on a broiler's embryonic development. Although hypoxia is a normal part of fetal development, extreme levels of hypoxia can lead to abnormalities and even death.

This paper addresses some of the responses to a hypoxic environment within the egg as well as how hypoxia can be utilized to improve performance post-hatch.

2020 was a chaotic year for many of us, but how did things have to change for those responsible for formulating poultry diets? The shift may be a surprise to some. Check out our conversation with Roy Brister, Tyson Foods, as we discuss the changes that took place and what this means for the future of feed formulation.

Do you want to squawk with us? Complete the Get Involved with PSA Form to submit your topic for consideration on Let's Squawk About It.

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