Researcher: Inês Pereira Project Name: MICROMIX: Interaction between microplastics and mercury in a benthic microcosm

Home institution: NOVA School of Science and Technology - Portugal Host institution: Umeå Marine Science Center (UMSC)

Why did you choose the service/institution you chose?

I chose the Umeå Marine Sciences Centre because they had the necessary equipment for analysing my samples, which was unavailable at my home institution. The Centre provided direct field sampling by boat on the Baltic Sea, as well as climate-controlled experimental halls with seawater. The Department of Chemistry at Umeå University offered me the opportunity to learn about and access state-of-the-art analytical techniques that were essential for my experiment.

How did this access experience support your research?

This access helped me to make progress with my PhD research. The infrastructure and technical resources available enabled me to conduct a more robust experiment and learn new techniques, as well as collaborate with expert researchers.

How does your project benefit society, industry, or policy?

My project investigates the impact of interactions between microplastics and mercury on benthic ecosystems. The results of this research could help us to understand the impact of contaminant mixtures in aquatic environments, and ultimately support the ecological risk assessment and management of contaminated ecosystems.

How did this experience mark your scientific career?

This experience enabled me to further my PhD studies, collaborate with other researchers, and work in an interdisciplinary environment. It was a valuable opportunity to learn how to write, conduct and manage a small research project, as well as to develop new techniques. Having this international experience was very enriching as an early career researcher.

Please share some words of encouragement to future users.

I strongly encourage anyone, especially early-career researchers, interesting in leading their own research project, to apply to AQUASERV calls. This unique experience, the technical and scientific knowledge that you will learn as well as the new collaborations that you will initiate, will certainly boost your scientific career.