Seven of Australia's brightest young scientists attended the 72nd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting dedicated to physiology and medicine from 25 June to 1 July in Germany.
The Australian delegation was led by nutrition scientist and Academy Fellow Professor Jennie-Brand Miller AO.
Participation in the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings is proudly supported by the Science and Industry Endowment Fund (SIEF) and administered by the Australian Academy of Science.
This event is a highly prestigious annual gathering of Nobel Laureates and approximately 600 young scientists from around the world.
The meetings provided an opportunity for young Australian scientists to share their research, experiences and ideas, and gain inspiration from fellow emerging scientists and Nobel Laureates.
Through lectures, Agora talks, Laureate Lunches, Science Walks and open exchanges, the delegates learnt about both the professional and personal lives of the Laureates.
One of the delegates, Dr Kate Secombe from the University of Adelaide said, “Many of the Nobel Laureates were very generous with their time and their answers.
“I particularly enjoyed listening to the Open Exchanges between Young Scientists and Nobel Laureates Frances Arnold and Emmanuelle Charpentier.
“It was interesting to hear about how they have fit their careers into their life and how things have changed since winning a Nobel Prize. They were very candid about their decision making at critical points in their career and also the sacrifices they have made.”
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Another delegate, Cottrell Tamessar from the University of Newcastle and the Hunter Medical Research Institute, described their most memorable experience at the meeting as, “Listening to Professor Shwetak N Patel’s lecture on ‘The emergence of mobile phones and wearables in health’.
“His talk was a fantastic implementation of AI in medical research and an inspiration for how researchers could be implementing cutting edge technology in STEM.
“I also learned vocabulary like ‘democratising healthcare,’ which is a notion I have been passionate about in my own research but now I have the common understanding/language to connect to the broader scientific landscape.”
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The Academy also organised a Research Innovation Tour in Berlin the week before the Lindau meeting.
The tour enabled the young scientists to visit a range of prestigious research institutes connected to their fields of studies, including the Charité University Berlin, the Humboldt University, the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and the German Centre for Rheumatic diseases (Rheumaforschungszentrum).
A highlight of their trip was meeting the Australian Ambassador, Phillip Green, at the Australian Embassy in Berlin and learning about the role of science in Australia and Germany’s bilateral relationship.
For our young scientists, this was an experience of a lifetime.
Rachel Visontay from the University of Sydney said, “I made such strong friendships with the Aussie group and loved exchanging experiences of being a young researcher in Australia.
“[I] got a great sense of the German research scene. Lindau was so intellectually stimulating, especially getting to meet brilliant young people from around the world!”
Next year’s 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, which is dedicated to the discipline of physics, will be held from 30 June – 5 July 2024.
Applications for the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting are open now.
© 2024 Australian Academy of Science
