I’m delighted to announce that, beginning September 1, 2024, my research group and I will be embarking on a new chapter at the Geology Section of the Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen. It is an honor to join this esteemed department as a Professor, where we will continue our exploration of the co-evolution of life and our planet and the processes that have shaped both.
For the past 11 years, my time at the Natural History Museum and the Globe Institute has been deeply fulfilling. As I step down from leading the Section of Geobiology and the Globe Sustainability Program, I look forward to fostering new collaborations within the University of Copenhagen. Our shared goal is to deepen our understanding of Earth System science and Paleoclimate— central research fields that have growing awareness and potential to help us understand connections between our planet’s past, present, and future.
I am also thrilled to share that I have been awarded the New Explorative Research and Discovery (NERD) Grant by the Novo Nordisk Foundation. This grant will support the establishment of the Metallomics Lab, where, over the next seven years, we will explore the fascinating journey of metals from aqueous environments into aquatic photosynthetic organisms. This research will expand our understanding of geomicrobiology, biogeochemistry, and the environments that sustain life, with potential implications for both science and medicine.
Thanks to the generous support of the Carlsberg Foundation, our Metallomics Lab will soon be equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation, and we aim to have it operational by the end of this year. I am also deeply grateful to the Danish Council for Independent Research and Villum Fonden, whose support enables the continued efforts of our dedicated team: Dr. Mariano Remirez, Dr. Zhengfu Zhao, PhD candidate Julie Fredborg, and Research Assistants Agnete Abildtrup and Astrid Juel Bojsen-Møller, who will join me at IGN.
This is an exciting time for our research, and I look forward to sharing more as we uncover the intricate and awe-inspiring processes that govern our natural world. Stay tuned for details on my inaugural lecture—I look forward to connecting with you all in this new chapter.