Louis William Marc Martin KRIEGER Research Faces DeLux

What brought you to Luxembourg and what does your current job consist of?

I started my first job in Luxembourg since at the end of 2018. I came to Luxembourg because I stumbled upon an opportunity to continue doing research, and coincidentally I am able to live at home. I speak five languages, four of which fluently.

I currently work as a researcher, where my job consists of looking deeper into the water transport in trees. I do so by measuring the water flow between different species in experiments and then comparing the structures of their water pathways. By combining these experiments with research that others have completed before me, I can try to find new patterns to tell us more about the way plants ‘drink’.

What do you like most about your job?

What I like the most about my job is the encouragement I get from my supervisors for elements outside of work. There are two big examples in my case. The first occurred when along with a friend at work, we wanted to create an organization within the University of Luxembourg. Even though this was not directly a part of our PhD, our supervisor was happy for the initiative we were taking. He even asks us how. Together we founded DSAiL (the Doctoral Student Association in Luxembourg) which is there to help PhD students navigate through their studies and help them set the path forward.

The second point of encouragement came when I was following a new passion I had discovered: science communication. They didn’t just tell me to focus on my work now but they encouraged me to look into. Starting with suggestions of what I can do within our department, all the way to allowing me to do an internship with DESCOM and the scienteens lab.

What’s your advice for a newcomer to Luxembourg?

These are also examples of my advice for newcomers to Luxembourg. It is to actively look for things to participate in. It is rare to passively come across activities and engagements that you want to pursue on your own. Ask around and let people know your interests, for me they have been happy to let me know if they see an opportunity I could be interested in. The same should go the other way as well, let people know if you see something they could be interested in.

What was your best experience in Luxembourg?

All of the amazing opportunities I gained were from people knowing what I liked and wanted to look into. And I am very grateful for the community that was willing to help me even though I did not directly ask.