RIPLRT Institute Research Group Manual
A Guide for Environmental Immunology, Respiratory Health Equity, Computational Discovery, and Inclusive Mentoring
The operating system of the RIPLRT Institute: a mentee-powered environmental immunology and respiratory health equity research group translating environmental exposures into equitable respiratory and immune health.
Welcome to the RIPLRT Institute’s Research Group Manual
This is the operating system of the RIPLRT Institute — a mentee-powered environmental health, immunology, and respiratory health equity research group. We translate environmental exposures into equitable respiratory and immune health through exposure science, biochemical, microbiology, and immune biomarker discovery, computational approaches, reproducible analytics, bilingual science communication, and inclusive mentoring.
The RIPLRT Institute operates under Felix E. Rivera-Mariani PhD LLC. It is an independent research and mentoring organization and is not an entity, department, or administrative unit within organizations with which Dr. Félix E. Rivera-Mariani (founder, principal investigator and mentor) is affiliated with (Lynn University, the University of Puerto Rico). What the Institute does do is mentor and integrate students and early-career scientists from Lynn University and from outside Lynn University - at different stages of their careers - into its projects, its culture, and its workforce-development mission.
If you are reading this because you recently joined us: welcome. This manual is the fastest way to understand who we are, how we work, what we expect of one another, and how we give credit. If you are a returning member, treat it as a living reference — return to it when you onboard a new teammate, start a project, plan a manuscript, or hit a question about process. Note that this manual is not a static document. It is a living, evolving resource that we update as we learn and grow together. We encourage you to contribute to it by sharing your insights,suggestions, and feedback.
If you are joining through Lynn University, your work is carried out under the Educational Biomarker Discovery Lab (EBDL) — the umbrella through which RIPLRT-affiliated research operates within Lynn University. In short: the RIPLRT Institute (under Felix E. Rivera-Mariani, PhD, LLC) is the research group and its operating system; the EBDL is the Lynn University–housed branch through which Lynn-affiliated members conduct that work, subject to Lynn University policy. Members who join from other institutions, or independently, are mentored directly under the RIPLRT Institute.
This is a culture document, onboarding guide, project-management playbook, mentoring compact, reproducibility guide, authorship policy, and operating system in one. It is not a legal contract. For work conducted through the Educational Biomarker Discovery Lab at Lynn University, this manual does not override Lynn University policy, IRB protocols, sponsor terms, or applicable law: where institutional policy and this manual disagree, institutional policy governs. For work conducted under the RIPLRT Institute outside of Lynn University, the governing terms are those of Felix E. Rivera-Mariani, PhD, LLC and any applicable sponsor or partner agreements. Where this manual is silent, ask.
0.1 Our central narrative: Community-to-Clinic-to-Cloud
Everything we do follows one arc. We measure and interpret environmental signals in communities, link them to clinical, claims, biomarker, and repository-based outcomes, and convert them into equity-aware decision tools for clinicians, agencies, students, and the communities themselves.
Our scientific through-line is:
Exposure Science → Immune Bioactivity → Computational Modeling → Equity-Focused Translation → Inclusive Workforce Development
0.2 How to read this manual
- New members: Read Chapters 1–9 in your first two weeks, then complete the onboarding checklist in the
/formsappendix. Sign the acknowledgment form within your first 7 days. - Project leads: Pay special attention to Chapters 6, 10, 11, 12, and 14, and use the project pod charter template before kickoff.
- Mentors and mentees: Chapters 7 and 8 are your compact. Use the IDP and one-on-one templates each semester.
- Everyone: Chapters 11–13 (data governance, reproducibility, and responsible AI) apply to all of us, all the time.
0.3 A note on tone
We are a serious research organization and a humane mentoring environment. Those are not in tension. We use “we” language because the lab belongs to all of us — it is our research group, not only the PI’s. We state expectations directly because clarity is a form of respect. And we assume good faith, because that is how trust is built and how science gets done.
0.4 How to cite this manual
If you quote, adapt, or build on this manual, please cite it. A recommended citation for the current edition is:
RIPLRT Institute. (2026). RIPLRT Institute Research Group Manual: A Guide for Environmental Immunology, Respiratory Health Equity, Computational Discovery, and Inclusive Mentoring (2026 Edition). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21538576
- Version DOI (this release): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21538576 — use this when you need to cite a specific archived version.
- Concept DOI (always the latest): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21538575 — use this when you want the link to resolve to the most recent release.
- Source repository: https://github.com/riplrt/riplrt-manual-2026
This manual improves because members improve it. See CONTRIBUTING.md for how to propose edits via GitHub issues or pull requests, or raise it in a weekly (bi-weekly or unscheduled) huddle. Every contributor is acknowledged in the changelog.
Maintained by the RIPLRT Institute, a research and mentoring entity under Felix E. Rivera-Mariani PhD LLC. Principal Investigator and mentor: Dr. Félix E. Rivera-Mariani, PhD, FAAAAI. Built reproducibly with Quarto. Last major revision: 2026. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21538575.