ISBER Best Practices Webinar Series: Best Practices for Best Practices 5!

Join us for a special webinar series highlighting key updates in the 5th Edition of ISBER’s Best Practices for Repositories. Each session will explore major changes from BP4 to BP5, practical applications of the updated guidelines, and lessons learned from real-world implementation in biobanks worldwide.

Offered live and recorded, these 75–90 minute webinars will run monthly from August to December 2025. All sessions are presented in English and based on content from the BP5 publication and real-world operational experience. The sessions will be recorded and available on demand to registered attendees.

📅 Webinar Schedule

OPERATIONS
🗓️ August 27, 2025 | 12:00 PM EDT
Presenters:

• Ian Pope, IC Biomedical, USA
  
• Billy Schleif, Johns Hopkins All Children's Pediatric Biorepository, USA

Synopsis:

In 90 minutes, the co-presenters will provide key updates on the ISBER Best Practices relating to Operations, including the setting up and maintenance of facilities and equipment, personnel and organizational management, communication strategies, risk management, and recovery planning. These specific topic areas will be linked to real work examples and integrations, experienced by the co-presenters themselves, together with opportunities for attendees to ask questions and discuss personal scenarios they may be addressing in their own environment.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand key updates between the 4th and 5th Editions of the ISBER Best Practices relating to Operations. 
2. Develop expertise in Operational areas required for building and maintaining a Biorepository facility. 
3. Practice knowledge implementation via evaluation at your own facility for gaps in Best Practices and construct solutions for improvement.
   

LEVERAGING YOUR COLLECTION —SHARING, DISTRIBUTION & COLLABORATION
🗓️ September 18, 2025 | 12:00 PM EDT
Presenters:

• Nilay Chakraborty, ATCC, USA
• Adelina Ovcharenko, MIDGAM - Israel National Biobank for Research, Israel

Synopsis:

Biobanking plays a vital role in sustaining the fabric of modern biotechnology, drug discovery, and precision medicine. Access to high-quality biological samples and data is essential for advancing biomedical research, and biobanking provides the expansive framework of preservation and collection that underpins both current and future medical breakthroughs.

This webinar will outline frameworks for biospecimen sharing and distribution, highlighting opportunities for collaboration with academia, hospitals, and industry. Key topics will include governance, regulatory and ethical considerations, and examples of successful partnerships that demonstrate the impact of collaborative biobanking.

Participants will gain practical insights into the process of accessing samples and data, while exploring how transparent and equitable biobanking practices can strengthen sustainability. The session will emphasize how building strong partnerships with researchers, clinicians, and communities ensures that every donated sample contributes to impactful discoveries—advancing both patient care and global biomedical research.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the importance of biobanking and the role it plays in today's biotech world with a case study of ATCC being presented as an example.
2. Understand MIDGAM’s framework for sharing and distributing biospecimens.
3. Recognize the regulatory, ethical, and community considerations in collaborative biobanking.
4. Apply practical strategies to access resources and build impactful research partnerships.

---------------------------------

GOVERNANCE & PLANNING
🗓️ October 27, 2025 | 4:00 PM EDT
Presenters:

• Samantha Higgins, Victoria Cancer Biobank, Melbourne, Australia
• Peter Kilbride, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford University, UK

Synopsis:

Governance isn’t just a checkbox—it’s the backbone of a thriving, impactful repository. Whether you're just stepping into repository management or a seasoned biobanker aiming to sharpen your strategic edge, this webinar is your gateway to smarter, more sustainable governance. Drawing from ISBER Best Practices (5th edn, Ch A1-A4) this webinar will focus on governance, stakeholder engagement, and policy set-up when establishing, re-focusing, or maintaining a biobank. 
The webinar will explore compelling real-world case studies from national facilities to regional/local - and from human cells and tissues, to zoonotic specimens - to discover how governance contributes to overall sustainability, relevance, ethical stewardship and real-world impact. Learn how clear governance milestones and purposeful strategic planning can transform your repository into a long-term asset for research and public good. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain practical insights and elevate your governance game

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand Repository Landscapes: Explore the different types of repositories across human, animal and biodiversity spectrum; and uncover best practices for strong governance, strategic planning, and effective management in different settings.
2. Navigate Stakeholder Dynamics: Understand how repositories connect with stakeholders, personnel, and the wider community—and why these relationships are key to success.
3. From Strategy to Action: Learn what internal and external expertise to leverage when establishing and maintaining a repository or biobank.

---------------------------------

ETHICAL, LEGAL &SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS
🗓️ November 13, 2025 | 11:00 EDT
Presenters:

• Ahmed Samir Abdelhafiz, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Egypt
• Paulo Holanda, Bioquallis Consultoria, Brazil

Synopsis:

This webinar on the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) in biobanking highlights the significant expansion of this section in the 5th edition of ISBER Best Practices compared to the 4th edition. The updated version places greater emphasis on core ethical concepts while acknowledging the diversity of legal systems and cultural contexts across different regions. The session will explore key additions introduced in the 5th edition, focusing on how these changes align with the international landscape of biobanking. A special focus will also be given to the newly added subsections addressing the ELSI considerations of non-human biobanking, including animal, microbial, and plant samples, an important development not present in detail in earlier editions. This webinar aims to provide attendees with a comprehensive understanding of the evolving ELSI framework and its application across global biobanking settings, supporting ethical and culturally sensitive practices.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify key updates in the ELSI section of the 5th edition of ISBER Best Practices compared to the 4th edition.
2. Understand how ethical principles are applied across diverse legal and cultural settings.
3. Recognize the importance of ELSI considerations in animal, plant, and microbial biobanking

---------------------------------

QUALITY MANAGEMENT

🗓️ December 9, 2025 | 12:00 PM EDT
Presenters:

• Anna Michalska-Falkowska, Medical University of Bialystok, Poland
• Purnima Singh, Friedman Advanced Research Institute, Mount Sinai Medical Center, USA

Synopsis:

This webinar will explore the updated Quality Management framework presented in the ISBER Best Practices, Fifth Edition (BP5). Participants will gain insight into the central role of Quality Management in ensuring specimen and data integrity, reproducibility, and trust in biobanking. Key updates from BP4 to BP5 will be highlighted, including the shift to a risk-based and flexible approach, stronger emphasis on leadership and quality culture, and expanded guidance on documentation, SOPs, resource management, and vendor oversight. Practical strategies will be discussed for operationalizing these principles, such as building risk-based QMS, modernizing documentation, conducting meaningful management reviews, implementing robust CAPA, and leveraging audits as tools for improvement. Lessons learned from implementation will address common challenges, including culture change and resource constraints. The session will conclude with actionable recommendations and resources to support the adoption of BP5 as a framework for effective, proportionate, and sustainable Quality Management in biobanking.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the role of Quality Management in ensuring specimen and data integrity in biobanking.
2. Identify key changes between the Fourth and Fifth Editions of ISBER Best Practices.
3. Learn practical strategies to implement a risk-based and flexible Quality Management System.
4. Explore methods for modernizing documentation, audits, and CAPA processes.
5. Recognize common challenges in adopting BP5 and approaches to overcome them.

Registration & Pricing:

• Individual Webinar (includes recording): $25 Members | $40 Non-Members
• Full 5-Webinar Series (includes recordings): $100 Members | $175 Non-Members
  • 👉 Save by purchasing the series — get 5 webinars for the price of 4!

Don’t miss this opportunity to stay current, strengthen your operations, and learn directly from experts in the field.