Just two weeks ago, Mary E. Brunkow stood on the Nobel stage to receive the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. As the only woman among this year's Nobel science laureates, her reflections on collaboration carry particular weight: a reminder that transformative discoveries are rarely the work of any single mind.
Mary E. Brunkow: "Big advances don't usually happen in isolation, so be a good team player – it's actually more fun that way – and embrace the give-and-take of sharing ideas, successes, and setbacks."
Leadership That Makes Space For Others
Brunkow's Nobel recognised discoveries that reshaped how we understand the immune system's capacity to protect without turning on itself. Working alongside Fred Ramsdell at a Seattle-area biotech company in 2001, she identified mutations in the FOXP3 gene that cause severe autoimmune disease in both mice and humans. This finding provided crucial evidence for the existence of regulatory T cells, the immune system's "security guards," and opened new paths for treating autoimmune conditions, cancer and transplant rejection.
Her quote points to something quietly radical about how progress happens. Significant advances depend less on singular breakthrough moments and more on the daily discipline of building alongside others. It asks us to value contribution over control, to offer ideas before they feel fully formed, and to remain present when the work is uncertain or unfinished.
Within the Laidlaw community, leadership often takes this shape. It emerges in research collaborations, in partnerships with communities, and in cohorts where learning deepens through trust and mutual responsibility. Being a "good team player" does not mean diminishing yourself. It means strengthening the work by creating conditions for others to contribute fully.
Brunkow's insight aligns with the Laidlaw values of being #Good and #Extra-ordinary, and the Oxford Character Project leadership virtue of #Humility. Good leadership is rooted in mutual respect and honest exchange. Extra-ordinary leadership recognises that excellence grows when different talents, perspectives and experiences converge. Humility keeps us open to learning, ready to share credit, and attentive to the work itself rather than to recognition.
A Call To Reflect
We invite you to reflect on Mary E. Brunkow's words. Where in your research, Leadership in Action project or wider community would it matter most to lead in a way that brings others with you? What kind of teammate do you want to be when the work is demanding, the timeline is long, and the outcome depends on more than one person?
Photo by Alex Garland for ISB