The 12th YES Meeting, organized by SETAC Europe’s Student Advisory Council, brought together emerging environmental scientists at RPTU (Campus Landau), Germany, to delve into the theme “Science Through Crises.” The third installment of this multipart blog series centers on the workshops and career talks conducted throughout the week-long YES Meeting 2023.
The 12th SETAC Young Environmental Scientists Meeting (YES Meeting) was hosted by the Student Advisory Council (SAC) of SETAC Europe at RPTU (Campus Landau), Germany from 28th August – 1st September 2023. This international forum brought together students and early career environmental scientists to exchange research and ideas in a welcoming and professional setting. With the theme “Science Through Crises,” the conference addressed the challenges and opportunities posed by global crises. The event, aligned with SETAC’s goal of Environmental Quality Through Science, fostered networking, education and empowerment for young researchers and experts from around the world.
Several workshops and career talk sessions were held during the YES Meeting 2023. In this blogpost, we would like to give our readers an overview of these sessions.
WORKSHOPS:-
1. Transfer of Anthropogenic Stress From Aquatic to Terrestrial Ecosystems – Perspectives From Young Researchers (August 29)
– This workshop by researchers from SystemLink focused on the transfer of resources and pollutants from aquatic to terrestrial ecosystems and the ecological responses in the terrestrial recipient ecosystem. It particularly targeted young researchers (Master and PhD students) in this area of research.
2. Data Science, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence and Their Potential for Environmental Protection and Nature Conservation (August 29)
– Jochen Zubrod discussed the terminology and professional fields related to collection, processing and analysis of data. He also covered modern approaches in data science, including machine learning and artificial intelligence and explored their potential for environmental protection and nature conservation.
3. Build Your Digital Brand – Scientist Edition (August 29)
– Pranoti Kshirsagar guided scientists in establishing a solid digital presence. This session covered different science communication platforms, content crafting and opportunities to grow one’s network on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn.
4. Stable Isotopes in Ecotoxicology – An Introduction to Concepts, Methodology and Applications (August 29)
– Eric Bollinger provided an introduction to stable isotope ecology, its methods and applications. This was particularly relevant for ecotoxicologists, as stable isotopes offer insights into chemical stress-related contexts.
CAREER TALKS:-
1. A gender-biased Tale of Flow and Nutrients (Aug 30)
– Clara Mendoza-Lera’s research focused on stream biogeochemistry and interactions among physical, chemical and biological elements. She explored the gender aspect of her work and its implications in academia.
2. Sustainability Science (Aug 31)
– Jun.-Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Berger led an interdisciplinary junior research group on freshwater salinization. She discussed the perks and challenges of academic careers in interdisciplinary settings and shared experiences from her network of scholars.
3. Going With the Flow and Enjoying the [Unexpected] Journey (Sep 1)
– Marissa Kosnik is a new tenure-track Group Leader in Systems Biology in the Department of Environmental Toxicology at Eawag, where her group researches the multi-level biological impacts of stressors on aquatic ecosystems. She discussed how ‘going with the flow’ has helped her through setbacks and has carved the path for her career up to this point. She talked about things she would do differently now, things she wishes she’d known sooner and being willing to follow a moving target.
Here are some glimpses of the workshops and career talk sessions held during the YES Meeting 2023:-
For those who missed the first and second installments of our blogpost series on the 12th YES Meeting 2023, catch up on the insightful highlights by visiting the following links: –
Stay tuned for more intriguing insights in the upcoming parts!