Dr. Falk is a clinical nephrologist and internationally recognized expert in vasculitis and autoimmune kidney disease. His career as a translational physician-scientist spans more than three decades. His practice and translational research focus on characterizing the cell, tissue, and physiologic changes in the development of specific autoimmune kidney diseases, including ANCA glomerulonephritis and small vessel vasculitis, and developing new approaches for studying autoimmunity, inflammation, and basic neutrophil/monocyte biology. In 1985, Dr. Falk co-founded the Glomerular Disease Collaborative Network (GDCN) to coordinate kidney disease research by nephrologists throughout the southeastern United States and connect them with the UNC School of Medicine. The GDCN now consists of more than 600 nephrologists from over 250 private nephrology offices and has enrolled patients in 16 specific glomerular disease registries. The GDCN has initiated or participated in numerous single-center and multicenter clinical trials, epidemiologic studies, and a wide range of basic science and translational research projects.