
Every morning, the first thing Alba Lloret Compañ did was to check on her plants at the research greenhouse of the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research (MPIPZ) in Cologne. “I was excited to see whether my experiment was working and my test plant Arabidopsis thaliana, also known as thale cress or mouse-ear cress, was in bloom.”
A Humboldt Fellow in the group of her host, George Coupland, in the MPIPZ’s Department of Plant Developmental Biology, she studied molecular mechanisms that plants use to regulate their growth and their flowering. “If we manage to influence plant genetics so that they bloom and bear fruit earlier, for example after two years instead of seven, this would be an advantage for plant breeders, farmers and consumers,” says Alba Lloret Compañ, explaining the aim of her basic research.
George Coupland and his team were one of the decisive reasons for going to Germany. Together with the good research conditions.
New perspectives
Her research stay came to an end in March 2024. “George Coupland and his team were one of the decisive reasons for going to Germany. Together with the good research conditions,” says Lloret Compañ. “In our institute, we had 10 confocal microscopes. In the 4,000-square metre research greenhouse, gardeners looked after the test plants, even changing the temperature, if asked.”
Lloret Compañ’s research stay brought her new perspectives – on her work but also on herself. “When I went to Cologne in the late summer of 2021, that was a very big step for me. I had never previously spent a longer period abroad and was very unsure. But my team really welcomed me, and Cologne is a city worth living in with an international atmosphere. After a few months, I became more confident, made contacts and utilised the multiple research opportunities at MPIPZ. During this period, I developed both personally and professionally,” says the former Humboldt Fellow in retrospect.
Contacts to Humboldtians all over the world and the opportunity to return to Germany on further research visits are very valuable for me.
Since March 2024, she has now been working in the Institute for Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology (IBMCP) that belongs to the Spanish National Research Counsil (CSIC), the largest public research institution in Spain – a position she is sure she largely has her experience abroad and the Humboldt Fellowship to thank for. There she is now investigating the influence of rising temperatures on plants. Against a backdrop of climate change and rising temperatures, breeding of this kind could, one day, improve harvests and food safety.
A network for life
It is crucially important to her that she is part of the Humboldt Network even though her fellowship has come to an end. “Contacts to Humboldtians all over the world and the opportunity to return to Germany on further research visits are very valuable for me.” Being a lifelong Humboldtian offers her a certain degree of security in her profession which is plagued by uncertainty due to fixed-term contracts. “It doesn’t matter how hard you work or how successful you are, you are never sure whether you can stay in science forever.” Despite the challenges, scientist is her dream job. “I can indulge my curiosity, can think logically and creatively to solve scientific puzzles. That is very satisfying.”
Open community
As a young person she was gripped by Marie Curie’s biography, and a biology teacher sparked her fascination with the subject – two role models who decisively shaped her professional aspirations. “I think it’s important that there should be more women in leading positions in science in the future. But in a diverse science world, non-binary people, people from the Global South and single mothers should also feel they are equal parts of the community." Alba Lloret Compañ hopes that people in science can come together without prejudice and take the challenges individuals face into account. And that the working conditions in science get noticeably better: “I would like to conduct research permanently and not have to deal with uncertainty.”
Text: Esther Sambale