I would like to say a massive “MERCI!”, thank you, to all the students and their teachers who participated to the I’m a Scientist Magnesium Zone! I am really grateful for them having elected me the Zone Winner!

You all had great and smart questions, and I had a great time having lively discussions with you about subjects as diverse as the oceans and ships, climate change, animals (Simone my cat says “Meow, hi!” to everyone who asked about her 😉 ), the Earth and the universe, scientific research, financial investment in video games company (true story! ^^), plate tectonics, food, reading, music, the world, the people… In three words: chatting about life!

Our chats made me re-think my research and how I got doing my job. In turn, I learnt a lot about myself and chatting with you all reminded me how much I love Geology and being a scientist. Thank you all for being so open-minded, curious, and dynamic.

I also would like to thank my fellow scientists of the Magnesium Zone, it was great to have the opportunity to learn more about the amazing research they do: Danielle researching solutions to COVID-19, Pawel designing radio frequency systems, Avion studying the quality of soils, Sam, Reabetswe, Cyrille, Erin, Andrew, Justine, Peter, and all the others.

I hope our diversity in terms of research topics and personalities have shown to the students that despite being hard-work, science careers are essential for the society (and can be fun!), but most importantly that Science is for everyone.

Last but not least, this activity was possible only thanks to the dedication of the I’m a Scientist team, including the moderators who were always helpful, and the funding by the Science Foundation Ireland. Thank you to them.
I would recommend engaging with the I’m a Scientist activity to as many scientists and teachers as possible: it really is a fruitful two-ways exchange.

I am very proud to bring back the zone prize to my research group at the Irish Centre for Research Applied in Geosciences, University College Dublin, where many scientists like me work to transform Irish Geoscience for the benefit of the society. I will use the prize to develop engagement and outreach activities on the topics of Geology, to continue to try to inspire students to become the next generation of scientists.

Thank you again to the students for your enthusiasm,
Keep being curious!

Gaël Lymer
Magnesium Zone winner