Microplastics in Soils | The Shrinking Caspian Sea

Growing Resilience from the Ground Up | Academic Teaching in Practice

Guest: Lotte Baert a Teaching Assistant and PhD researcher at Ghent University. Her research focuses on soil amendments and drought resilience, and explores how different materials such as compost, chitin, and other amendments influence soil water retention under changing climate conditions, combining greenhouse experiments with field studies. Alongside her research, she is actively involved in teaching, bringing together scientific investigation and academic training in her daily work.    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/baertlotte/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/baertlotte/]  Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/... [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/...]   🔗 Study Sources Mentioned in the Episode: Lotte’s research: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science... [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science...] Women statistics mentioned at 21:16 min https://www.eppgroup.eu/what-we-do/wi... [https://www.eppgroup.eu/what-we-do/wi...] Special thanks: to Lotte Baert for the images, videos, and feedback provided for this episode, also for having us for the practical cources   ⏱️ Timeline: 01:08 — Why Soil Amendments Are Essential Today 02:52 — The Amendments Behind the Research 07:46 — How Chitin-Enriched Compost Helps Soil 10:10 — Compost, Farming, and Climate Impact 12:50 — Interactive Teaching in Action (available on YouTube only) 12:50  — Life Between Research and Teaching 18:01 — What Makes Teaching Worth It 20:25 — Balancing Science, Teaching, and Motherhood 21:28 — Women’s Experiences in Academia 23:44 — Must-Have Skills for a PhD 28:13 — Tips for Incoming PhD Students

Robotics & AI: Fear vs. Reality | Lab Tour and Live Demos | The Future of Service Robots

In this episode, we’re joined by Prof. Francis wyffels and Dr. Andreas Verleysen from AIRO (AI & Robotics), the robotics team within IDLab (Ghent University – imec). Visit 'AIRO IDLab Ghent University - imec' website for more information: https://airo.ugent.be/ [https://airo.ugent.be/] More research works: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=r2JqQ0oAAAAJ&hl=en [https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=r2JqQ0oAAAAJ&hl=en] https://airo.ugent.be/ [https://airo.ugent.be/]  Relevant links mentioned in the episode: Dwengo - https://www.dwengo.org/ [https://www.dwengo.org/] Research at AIRO - https://airo.ugent.be/research/ [https://airo.ugent.be/research/] External video sources:  https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/videoseries?list=PLGFKZ_2y13shMLgsFvFt91mbtBWodEZ-M [https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/videoseries?list=PLGFKZ_2y13shMLgsFvFt91mbtBWodEZ-M] Optimus - Gen 2 | Tesla  https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/cpraXaw7dyc?feature=oembed [https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/cpraXaw7dyc?feature=oembed] NEO The Home Robot | X1  https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/LTYMWadOW7c?feature=oembed [https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/LTYMWadOW7c?feature=oembed] 00:36 — Who are our guests today 01:13 — What robots can actually do today (and why they’re not here to “take over”) 03:53 — From impressive demo to real-world scale: generalisation + industrial automation 06:39 — Humans first: robots as helpers and teammates, not replacements 09:20 — AI, creativity, and job security 12:06 — Lab tour & live demos 24:33 — Curiosity Camera 26:43 — Service robots in daily life: what’s coming next 27:55 — Why STEM curiosity matters 31:04 — Origin stories: how we got into AI & robotics 34:11 — Why making science accessible matters 37:50 — Pop culture robots: how movies shape perceptions 40:46 — Movies/books with thoughtful takes on robotics 44:42 — Current projects and real-world impact 46:30 — Essential skills for students and future PhDs 49:19 — Advice for incoming PhDs in AI & robotics

Andean mountain forests | Protection and Better Conservation | Field Science & From Data to Policy

Prof. Hans Verbeeck is a Research Professor at Ghent University, and also co-leader of the Q-ForestLab. His work integrates process-based ecosystem modelling, field ecology, and advanced remote-sensing to understand how forests respond to climate change. He has led major international projects working in tropical and temperate forests, He has important activities in the Congo Basin; did a lot of work on the impact of lianas on tropical forests, but today we will focus on his work the ecology and restoration of tropical mountain forest in the Andes in Ecuador (RecoAndes Project). His research connects fundamental ecological science with practical forest-management strategies aimed at improving carbon-sequestration and climate resilience. Prof. Verbeek on: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hans-verb... [https://www.linkedin.com/in/hans-verb...] ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/... [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/...] Q-Forestlab: https://q-forestlab.ugent.be/index.html [https://q-forestlab.ugent.be/index.html] External materials: video source for the project https://youtu.be/iF3bY-kDy38?si=eDYNx... [https://youtu.be/iF3bY-kDy38?si=eDYNx...] additional acknowledgements for the video: [EN] The video is a product of the Vice-Rectorate for Research and Innovation of the University of Cuenca, developed by MEDIALAB–Philosophy–2025 [ESP] Un producto del Vicerrectorado de Investigación e Innovación de la Universidad de Cuenca, desarrollado por MEDIALAB–Filosofía–2025 Special thanks: to Prof. Hans Verbeeck, Ximena Palomeque and Dalma Orellana Peralta for the images, videos and feedback provided for this episode, and also to the University of Cuenca. 00:15 Cold open: Why the Andes matter 01:24 Inside the Andean mountain forest research 03:01 Origin story: How the project began 04:37 Project partners + the importance of Indigenous knowledge 05:29 Why the Andean forest ecosystem is research-critical 06:44 PhD experience: reflection interview 10:21 Research impact: local communities and policy 12:24 Main threats to Ecuador’s mountain forests & how to investigate them 14:10 Methodology in action 17:06 Capacity building: what the project leaves behind 18:43 Which planet do you choose? Main message 20:07 Essential PhD skills to have/build 21:22 Advice for incoming PhDs

Open Access Data | MapYour Grid | Non-Traceable Sustainability

Tobias Augspurger – aerospace engineer, climate scientist, and open-source advocate. Also a founder of OpenSustain.tech, an open platform for free and open climate technology. He also pioneered the application of open source in the German automotive industry within the DHL Group as head of software development for autonomous driving, worked for over 13 years in different remote sensing applications, and loves to innovate based on open-source practices. Today, we will be talking about the MapYourGrid project. Tobias on LinkedIn:   / tobias-augspurger   MapYourGrid: https://mapyourgrid.org/ [https://mapyourgrid.org/] Other relevant mentioned sources: OpenSustain.tech: https://opensustain.tech/ [https://opensustain.tech/] The Open Source Sustainability Ecosystem report: https://lfenergy.org/2023-open-source... [https://lfenergy.org/2023-open-source...]    00:00 – Intro 00:56 – Who Is Tobias 02:09 – What Is MapYourGrid | Overlooked Quality Data from OpenStreetMap 09:31 – The Power of Open Access Data 11:37 – The Role of Local Communities 14:38 – How to Reach and Engage Local Communities 18:48 – Why Open Access Data Matters for a Traceable Sustainable Future 23:55 – On Non-Traceable Sustainability Claims and Greenwashing 31:20 – Open Access from Public and Private Sectors | Green Claims Act 34:42 – MapYourGrid 101 for Beginners 40:12 – Why We Still Need People | Limits and Cautions of AI 46:07 – Who Is Using Grid Stats Map 50:30 – Why Mapping the Electrical Grid Is Essential 52:76 – Current Challenges in MapYourGrid 58:10 – Sentinel-2 Data: Potential and Limitations 1:00:38 – Funding, Sponsors, and How to Support MapYourGrid 1:04:00 – MapYourGrid as a Teaching Tool 1:08:14 – Our Planet Is Too Complex to Argue with Black Boxes 1:08:52 – The Future Impact of MapYourGrid 1:09:59 – Prioritizing Natural Solutions in Today’s Systems

Microplastics in Soils | The Shrinking Caspian Sea

Nick Krekelbergh is a teaching assistant and PhD student at Ghent University. Nick's research focusses on the dynamics of microplastics in soils from a pedological perspective. Nick is also an active member at the Knowledge centre Viae Caspiae of Eureast Platform    Nick on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickkrekelbergh/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickkrekelbergh/] Nick on X: https://x.com/nickkrekelbergh?lang=en [https://x.com/nickkrekelbergh?lang=en] ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/... [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/...] ⏱️ Timeline: 00:00 – Intro 00:32 – Microplastics 101 14:49 – Microplastics as a soil-forming factor in the 21st century 21:54 – Challenges of measuring microplastics: is there a standardized method? 24:39 – Research & policy priority highlights (OVAM report) – Why Belgium may lead 26:01 – Current research highlights: Raman vs fluorescence 35:02 – Lab tour 47:57 – What is the ‘Knowledge Centre Viae Caspiae’? 51:06 – Shrinking Caspian Sea & historical repetition (Aral Sea parallels) 57:27 – Why EU and Central Asia matter to each other 1:00:00 – Essential skills for incoming academics 1:01:54 – Advice for PhDs