Pointing Out the UMA Foundation
In a better world, the US research community would receive the same level of comparatively enthusiastic and well-informed public support for longevity science that is seen in Russia, while the Russian research community would enjoy the same greater level of access to funding as is found in the US. Or at the very least, the greater funding and greater public support would coincide, rather than each being in the most inconvenient location, as is the case at present.
I've kept half an eye on what is going on in the Russian longevity research community these past few years, ever since the advent of free and borderline usable automated translation tools. That community has its own enthusiastic advocates and organizations that are analogous in their roles to the Methuselah Foundation and SENS Research Foundation - working to generate greater public support and funding for their preferred means to extend healthy human life and eliminate age-related disease. The Science for Life Extension Foundation is one such group, and the UMA Foundation is another more recent addition to that network of people and organizations:
We believe scientists change the world. Not politicians, not oligarchs, scientists do. They create technologies that save people's lives, make our life style more comfortable, improve our health and make us age later. Thanks to scientists work we are able to see entire world in a life time, understand each other better, communicate and most wise of us - unite based on work for better world and added value.We think scientists work (especially young ones) is undervalued by our government and society. Many laws need improvement, too many labs need new equipment, new people, new ideas. Modernization and innovative technologies are impossible without fundamental science in Russia.
Today bio science not only can bring a fortune to researchers but make ones life fuller, bring creativity beyond even art and make young scientist name legendary. Join us! Apart from uniting on social media, we organize interesting conferences, events. We also help receiving funding for fundamental research and development and explain / explore some possible career paths in science in Russia.
While the declared mission is general improvement of the prospects for science and the scientific community in Russia, the specific projects funded by the UMA Foundation are largely focused on the life sciences and somewhat weighted towards longevity research and related projects. The Foundation was a sponsor of the 2012 Genetics of Aging and Longevity conference, for example. For this, we can look to the presence of Alex Zhavoronkov on the board: in addition to working with UMA Foundation he is a director of the UK Biogerontology Research Foundation, runs the International Aging Research Portfolio, and is a point of connection to other reaches of the longevity science community. Networking makes the world turn.