SETAC North America Board of Director Candidates 2027
The SETAC North America Board of Directors is pleased to present to all full SETAC members residing in North America (residing in Canada, Mexico and the United States), a slate of candidates to join the board in 2027 for three-year terms. The Governance Committee evaluated expressions of interest from the membership and prepared the slate striving for a balance in competencies and personal characteristics, in accordance with the SETAC North America by-laws.
To maintain sector balance, the board is nominating three members from the business sector for one business sector seat and two members from the government sector for two government sector seats. The board is also nominating a student for the position of Vice Chair of the North America Student Advisory Council (NASAC) in 2027 and an ex-officio board member in 2028.
Learn more about the candidates below.
Candidates for Business Sector Positions
Adriana Bejarano
Adriana Bejarano is an environmental scientist at ExxonMobil Biomedical Sciences. Her professional experience spans consulting, government and industry. She received her Ph.D. from the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina. She has been an active member of SETAC since 2004. Her expertise is in molecular and organismal effects and the impact of environmental exposures on biological pathways. She has contributed to SETAC through presenting, planning courses, and chairing sessions at meetings, publishing in the SETAC journals, and actively participating in several Interest Groups. She has also served in a leadership position on the SETAC North America Science and on several meeting program committees.
Bejarano is interested in serving on the Board of Directors because she believes the Society is well positioned to advance credible, inclusive and globally relevant environmental science at a time when cross-sector collaboration is important. She hopes to bring to the Board practical governance and program experience, a global perspective, and a collaborative leadership style with a strong commitment to service, scientific excellence, capacity building and SETAC’s global mission.
Audrey Bone
Audrey Bone is an (eco)toxicologist with Bayer in the Crop Science Division. She has 17 years of experience working in academia, government and industry. She received her Ph.D. from the Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment. Her expertise includes aquatic and terrestrial vertebrate toxicology, endocrine disruption, and regulatory science. She is particularly interested in the use of new approach methods (NAMs) to predict toxicity and risk in the environment. She has been actively involved within several SETAC Regional Chapters and Interest Groups and has presented at many SETAC meetings. She has been involved with SETAC since 2010.
Bone is interested in serving on the Board of Directors because she values SETAC programming to stay informed, network, and build scientific presentation skills. She appreciates that SETAC brings together diverse expertise, sectors, and perspectives to advance environmental science and management. She believes her professional background has prepared her well to contribute to an organization that values multi-sector engagement and science-informed decision-making.
Megan Solan
Megan Solan is a Toxicologist at ExxonMobil Biomedical Sciences, Inc., where she supports regulatory compliance, hazard assessment, alternative testing strategies, and in vitro toxicology capability development. She earned her Ph.D. in Environmental Science from Baylor University, where her research focused on PFAS toxicology, human health risk assessment, and alternative testing methods. Megan has been an active SETAC volunteer since 2018. She has served in leadership positions within SETAC committees including the SETAC North America Careers Committee, SETAC 9th World Congress Program Committee, and North America Student Advisory Council (NASAC).
Solan believes that SETAC has been instrumental in her development as a scientist, leader and environmental professional. She is seeking a governance position to continue contributing to the society’s long-term success while helping advance member engagement, professional development, and scientific excellence. As an early-career professional, she believes that she will bring a valuable perspective to governance discussions. She promises to bring a collaborative leadership style, governance experience, strategic thinking, and a strong commitment to supporting SETAC’s mission while fostering meaningful engagement across sectors, disciplines and career stages.
Candidates for Government Sector Positions
Christina Baghdikian
Christina Baghdikian is a seasoned communications and engagement leader within the U.S. Federal government. She holds an MP.H. in Environmental Health Sciences from the University of Michigan. She has more than a decade of experience translating complex environmental science, chemicals policy, and public health research into clear, actionable messaging for various audiences. She has advised senior leadership, shaping strategic communications, cross‑divisional workflows and high‑visibility external engagement efforts. Her work has strengthened U.S. programs on climate change, wildfire smoke, environmental health and chemical safety, earning multiple Honor Awards. She has been an avid SETAC member and has presented talks and posters, chaired scientific sessions, developed courses, and coordinated exhibit booths at SETAC North America meetings.
Baghdikian wants to participate in the Board of Directors to give back to the Society that has been supportive, inclusive and engaging to her as a science communicator among Ph.D. experts in their field. As a mid-career SETACer, she wants to support SETAC’s long-standing interest in ensuring that science is accessible, useable and cross-cutting in the real world. She is interested in engaging with other SETACers to keep them engaged, help them find a voice and home in the Society, and help SETAC increase its visibility among global stakeholders.
Kurt Gust
Kurt Gust is a Research Biologist and Team Lead for Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology (EGSB) at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg, MS, USA. He has been working there since he obtained his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University in 2005. His research efforts span multiple disciplines within the biological and environmental sciences, where genomics and systems biology have served as platforms for advanced R&D in ecotoxicology, materiel life cycle analysis, synthetic biology and bio-inspired systems. He has published heavily in SETAC Journals and is proud to have won the Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry Best Paper Award for 2024.
Gust is motivated to join the Board of Directors to support the incorporation of cutting-edge science approaches into the society’s vision for environmental and ecotoxicological health monitoring and environmental quality sustainment. He believes he can bring his network of collaborators to SETAC. To the Board, he brings scientific expertise coupled with financial acumen.
Candidate for the North America Student Advisory Council Vice Chair
Brian John Weir
Brian Weir is a second-career undergraduate in environmental science at Portland State University with an anticipated graduation in the spring of 2028. He plans to enter a graduate program in environmental toxicology with a focus on freshwater organisms and emerging contaminants afterward. He joined SETAC as a freshman and has been active ever since. He is very involved within the Pacific Northwest Regional Chapter and the North America Student Advisory Council (NASAC).
Weir is interested in serving as the NASAC vice-chair to get more involved on an administrative level with the organization of student activities and interface with the Board of Directors. His biggest motivation in pursuing the position is to be involved with creating the future of students at SETAC.