Scientific breakthroughs are often associated with extraordinary individuals, landmark discoveries or Nobel Prizes.
Yet behind almost every major advance in the life sciences lies something far less visible: decades of international collaboration, shared infrastructure, open data and networks of researchers working across borders.
According to Markova (pictured), this collaborative model is no longer simply beneficial; it has become essential.
As scientific questions grow more complex and technologies more demanding, excellence increasingly depends not on the capabilities of individual laboratories, but on the strength of international scientific ecosystems.
“Science is fundamentally a collaborative endeavour. In biology, the life sciences and many other disciplines, science does not happen in a single laboratory … even if it starts as an idea in the mind of a single individual. It is built on sharing knowledge, data and ideas,” Markova says.
She argues that scientific discoveries mature through exchanges with researchers, collaborative projects and shared expertise — processes that often unfold for many years before their impact on society becomes visible.
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