Three questions are asked from scientists across Europe to explore the range of views on key topics in science.

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EYCN Podcast

You want to hear something about the latest chemistry research while walking the dog, washing the dishes, or doing your laundry? We have got you covered! In late 2020, the EYCN started a new science podcast to present current research topics in chemistry and related sciences to a general audience.

With this podcast, the EYCN wants to make current chemical research more accessible and demystify currently discussed science topics in the news. The target audience is not only chemists who want to explore topics beyond their own research, but also science-interested people in the general public. Each episode focuses on a highly discussed field or research topic. The EYCN gives a short introduction and interviews an expert in the field. Furthermore, they are highlighting some of the most interesting stories in chemical research in the last month.

Science for Policy

An overreaching objective of the Science Policy Team has been to provide a platform for young chemists to contribute to the policy-making process in Europe. Since such a platform has not existed previously, the initial milestone has thus been to set a path towards establishing it. As a result, early-career chemists would have a better understanding of policy-making as well as the opportunity for involvement, thereby having a broader impact on our society globally.

Some of the activities and initiatives lead by Science Policy Team:

• Supporting EuChemS in science (for) policy activities and identifying the opportunities for young chemists to engage with policy-makers in Europe.
• Providing a comprehensive overview of the activities and guidelines for the Delegates
• Contributing to a database of early-career chemists and their field of expertise
• information for surveys (such as the Employability Survey)
• Organizing seminars and workshops on topics related to policy advice. For instance, during the 15th Delegate Assembly in Sitges, an interactive “Science (for) Policy Session” took place. The main purpose was to identify key policy concerns, discuss options to actively engage, formulate strategies to address, and form a team for the European Youth Event (EYE).
• Communicating information about the projects and developments to the delegates and the public on different platforms, such as scientific journals, newsletters, and social media:
  • Science Policy Handouts
  • Articles – e.g. “The Role of Early-Career Chemists in European Policy-Making”
  • Official letters to the EYCN Delegates
  • Other guidelines and overviews for the team and young scientists
• Attending science policy events in Europe and abroad, such as:
  • The IUPAC event on politics in chemistry (YouPack, Summer 2019)
  • The European Youth Event (2020)
  • European Research & Innovation Days (2020)
  • Discussion at the EU Parliament in collaboration with Knowledge4Innovation
• Pursuing independent collaborative opportunities and partnerships with academic, industrial, and governmental representatives (e.g. participation in events and dialogues around the initiatives and various legislations), such as with the European Commission and the National Science Policy Network, and others.
• Contributing to the “legislative process” in any appropriate capacity, such as through (a) actively monitoring the activities and the legislative process, as well as (b) providing expertise through the shared database of experts when required while keeping EuChemS informed.
• Striving to contribute to long-term sustainability in Europe as well as globally, such as through partnerships evolving around the European Green Deal and advocating for sustainability in education, as well as organising webinars and workshops on the topic.

EYCN Webinars

The European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN) has hosted various webinars directed at a broad audience over the last years.

You can find detailed information about the individual series that were (co-)hosted by the EYCN below and in this article.

Mentorship: The Secret Key to Academic Life

Are you interested in learning more about mentoring, why we need mentors, and how to choose a good one? Then register for our upcoming webinar with Jen Heemstra!

November 10th, 5 pm CEST

Register here: eycn.eu/mentoring

Industry-Academia Collaborations

Are you interested in industry-academia collaborations? Then, our upcoming discussion featuring everything from students over a start-up to an incubator and an international company is exactly the thing for you!

EYCN-IYCN Collaboration Webinars on COVID-19:

During the pandemic, the European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN), had to find new and exciting ways of reaching our audience. Thus, the EYCN, in cooperation with the International Younger Chemists Network (IYCN), organised a series of webinars on COVID-19 and related topics. These webinars focused on dealing with COVID-19 (in terms of medical details, mental health, job hunting during the pandemic, and teaching) as well as various international awards relevant to early-career chemists.

Chemists Fighting COVID-19: A Global Conversation – Session 2: Tools to Thrive Remotely
Job Hunting During COVID-19
Fellowships and Awards for Young Chemists

Read more about this series in the article “Webinar Collaboration: COVID-19, Job Hunting and Awards” here.

CatalysisTalks – Early-career chemists presenting their work:

The European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN) and the Young European Catalysis Network (YEuCat) teamed up to start an online seminar series on catalysis research named CatalysisTalks. Each session of the series, which launched in Mid-May 2020, hosts three speakers from various countries and career stages with a particular focus on enabling early-career chemists to present their research.

Follow @CatalysisTalks on Twitter or LinkedIn!

Register for the series here (for free)!

Read more about this series in the article “CatalysisTalks – Bringing Research to the World during the COVID-19 Pandemic” here.

e-YCN@ECC Online Sessions:

The European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN) also hosted some of the 2020 in-person planned events online to continue supporting the young chemists’ community in remaining connected and keeping the interest in networking activities high. Among them, the e-YCN@ECC event was organized due to the postponement of the 8th EuChemS Chemistry Congress (ECC8) until 2022. The online event included multiple sessions about the future in chemistry, different career opportunities and professional development for young scientists in academia and industry. Particular attention was devoted to grant writing through two workshops aimed at providing useful tips for writing competitive MSCA and European Research Council grant proposals.

The following sessions are available to view online:

Session 1: Future in Chemistry
Session 2: Grant Writing Workshop
Session 3: Career Workshop
Session 5: Science Communication Workshop

The main purpose of the “EYCN Short Stories” is to bring the latest scientific achievements closer to other scientists, who are working in a different field of chemistry (or a related discipline) and the general public, as well as to promote the early-career researchers.

Therefore, we would like to invite you to explain your latest published work in such a short story. The text should be written in a fashion so that a non-scientific person is able to understand and should follow the requirements below:

• The story should be written in a Word document. Any submitted story should not exceed 150 words in the main text (i.e., the words for title and the references do not count). The number of references, which are supporting the content of the story should not exceed three (3). The references should be cited in the following order: Author(s), Journal title year, volume(issue), page numbers.
• The author(s) in references should be listed with Initial(s) and last name, separated by comma (e.g., A. Author1, B. Author2).
• The text can also contain an original figure or reproduced figure that meets the requirements in Section 3.2.1 of the Rules and Regulations (regarding copyright).
• The application should include information about the author (last name, first name, age, country, affiliation, level of education, date of completion of PhD (if completed) and e-mail address).
• The documents should be sent to per e-mail.
• In the case of acceptance, the story might be published on our website, social media, and the EYCN newsletter.

Please check the full rules and regulations.

We are looking forward to your contributions. Please feel free to contact us for further information or if you have questions!