"Being a student reporter teaches you how to bring across information throughout a lift ride." Senior student reporter Minette Flora Mendoza De Asis from the Philippines talks about her experiences being a student reporter and shares some thoughts about the Tropentag in general. Minette, why would you recommend the Tropentag? Because it's a venue for young scientists to present their research and offers a platform to get in touch with other scientists. It also presents the recent debates and depicts the challenges we currently face in agriculture.

What were your gains from last year's Tropentag? As a student reporter I learned a lot about journalistic backgrounds and how to communicate information in an understandable manner. For scientists it is important to make the knowledge you gained available, only then it can also be used. Being a student reporter teaches you how to bring across information throughout a lift ride. What is there that people should better not miss during Tropentag? The plenary sessions are highly relevant as they present the most topical subjects and recent developments. Also, it is good when you have friends doing a presentation to support them with your presence. Finally, I can recommend the final plenary session as it depicts the direction of agricultural development to come and the priorities that mankind will have to deal with in the future. What are your hopes for the Tropentag? I hope that we as student reporters do a good job, successfully promote the conference and can live up to the expectations. For future Tropentage I would hope that young scientists not only get the opportunity to present their findings but also can use the Tropentag to get better access to funding options.