Jeffrey Marlow, an assistant professor of biology, will be part of a cohort drawn from government, industry, nonprofits, and academia.

Accolades

Biologist Jeffrey Marlow Awarded National Academies’ New Voices Honor

Boston University expert in how microbial life endures in inhospitable places joins two-year program for nation’s outstanding emerging leaders

From the edge of active volcanoes to deep-sea vents to extremely salty lakes, Boston University biologist Jeffrey Marlow spends a lot of time in inhospitable places. One of his goals is to figure out how microbial life endures, even thrives, in the planet’s most hostile spots. His findings may offer insights into climate regulation and clues to the origins of life on Earth—and even the potential for life to exist on other planets.

In recognition of his work, Marlow has been selected to join the National Academies’ latest New Voices in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine cohort. The honor is given to “outstanding mid-career scientists, engineers, and medical professionals,” according to the organization, with the goal of building “a network of emerging US leaders to address national and global challenges.” 

A BU College of Arts & Sciences assistant professor of biology, Marlow will serve a two-year term, collaborating with 17 other cohort members drawn from government, industry, nonprofits, and academia. He says he’s looking forward to working with and learning from the other honorees.

“I think that hearing more about their experiences will reveal ways in which my lab’s research could find applications I never would have imagined,” says Marlow. “I’m very grateful that my department, and the University as a whole, encourages us to engage with the world beyond the lab, and beyond BU.”

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have a shared mission to “advise the nation on issues related to science and technology.”

“It’s important for scientists to consider the broader picture of how research gets done, and how our findings reverberate through society,” says Marlow of the New Voices program. “We’re privileged to have an up close perspective about how challenging, rewarding, and important research can be, and if we don’t see the scientific enterprise reaching its full potential, we need to play an active role in improving things.”

Marlow was also recently named—along with fellow BU biologist Meg Younger—a National Academy of Sciences 2026 Frontiers of Science Fellow. He’s the second BU faculty member to be selected for New Voices since its 2018 inception; Sabrina A. Assoumou, a BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine associate professor of medicine and the Louis W. Sullivan, MD, Professor of Medicine, was part of the 2024–26 cohort.

“The National Academies program brings together outstanding mid‑career scholars whose work is shaping the future of science, engineering, and medicine, and Jeff exemplifies that mission,” says Stan Sclaroff, dean of Arts & Sciences. “His research illuminates the profound—yet often invisible—ways microbial communities shape our planet, from regulating climate and recycling nutrients to influencing ecosystems in some of the most extreme environments on Earth. At a moment when global environmental change poses urgent challenges, Jeff’s work deepens our understanding of how these microbial systems function and why they matter.” 

Although Marlow and his fellow honorees are yet to meet and discuss their shared priorities, there are a couple of issues that he’ll be bringing to the table, including how the nation supports long-term research investments, like climate monitoring systems and oceanographic research vessels, and ways to build partnerships with scientists around the world.

“Research is strongest, and most valuable,” he says, “when it engages as many people from as many places as possible.”