The American Urological Association (AUA) Office of Research offers a large array of opportunities for urological researchers, particularly early career researchers. We administer 7 distinct grant programs that support the research experiences of medical students, postdoctoral fellows, residents, and faculty to further develop the pipeline of urological researchers at a time when this type of research is underfunded and underemphasized. We offer mentoring support through our Urology Scientific Mentoring and Training (USMART) Academy and Early Career Investigator Workshop (ECIW) to help early career researchers gain the skills and confidence they need to compete for research funding. Our research education offerings include in-person and online courses on grant writing, building your own research laboratory, practicing independent research, and identifying research challenges specific to urology. In addition, we kicked off the inaugural Innovation Nexus, the research incubator powered by the AUA, in April 2023 to showcase the next generation of urology innovators and facilitate future urological discovery.

Although we offer a wide range of research support programs, many of these programs are limited to AUA members within sections and do not fully include international urology researchers. To address this gap, we have 2 grant mechanisms open to international applicants, specific Early Career Investigator Showcase opportunities for international researchers, online courses open to all members and nonmembers, and a strong emphasis on international participation within the Innovation Nexus program. These efforts are a good start, but the AUA Research Council has identified a clear need to further engage international stakeholders as a strategic goal through 2025. International urology researchers often face additional challenges due to resource constraints, lack of research infrastructure, varying health care systems, workforce shortages, and technology limitations. We recognize the need to improve our global reach in supporting the unique needs of urological researchers across the world with AUA-sponsored research education, grants, and investigator support.

In early 2023, we created the International Research Work Group. The mission of the work group is to determine the needs of international urology researchers and guide the enhancement of AUA Office of Research education opportunities for these researchers, as well as to attract more international grant applications for AUA awards. Work group members were first nominated by international societies via a request from the AUA International Membership Committee. Nominees were required to have a strong track record of urological research and an interest in increasing urological discovery and innovation, collaborating with the AUA and with urological researchers from around the world and improving AUA offerings to the international research community. A total of 37 researchers were nominated from 16 countries. The AUA Office of Research and International Programs staff reviewed the nominations and made selections based on research experience, country and region, specialty area, career stage, and committee diversity. The selected work group members represent all AUA regions and 11 different countries. We would like to congratulate the following individuals on their appointments to the AUA International Research Work Group (see Table).

AUA Secretary Dr John Denstedt; AUA Secretary-elect Dr David Penson; and AUA Assistant Secretaries Dr Aseem Shukla, Dr Jorge Gutierrez-Aceves, and Dr Jose Karam also will advise the work group. We will augment the work group with several additional members in the coming weeks to maximize global representation.

The International Research Work Group held its initial meeting in February 2023. The first task for this group will be to create and distribute an International Urology Researcher Needs Assessment survey to determine how the AUA can best support international researchers in engaging in current or newly created AUA and Urology Care Foundation research programs. The working group will meet monthly via video conference over the course of the next year to create the survey, analyze the results, and make recommendations to the AUA to fill gaps in community needs. Using this information, the work group will make a series of recommendations for improving and enhancing Office of Research programs and then work with the Research Council to implement these recommendations.

The AUA Office of Research is committed to expanding the global reach of our research education, grants, and support programs. Whether through additional online offerings, adaptation of current course content, new or modified grant mechanisms, or additional mentoring services, we will strive to meet the needs of international urology researchers and increase their engagement with the AUA. The need for global health research has never been greater. It is time to reduce international barriers to working together as we improve urological care and discovery. Please join us in these efforts and, as always, feel free to reach out to me personally at Steven.Kaplan@mountsinai.org or tweet at @MaleHealthDoc.