Scientists are often blamed for living in a ‘scientific bubble’. Therefore, we challenge scientists at the Tropentag to explain their presentation as if they were talking to my mum at the kitchen table, who has, besides her own home garden and her cat and dog, nothing to do with research on ‘animal nutrition’. In part II we present Rein van der Hoek. Rein van der Hoek Rein van der Hoek works since 2006 as forage researcher in Central America and the Caribbean at CIAT (Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical) and is based in Nicaragua. During his presentation ‘Tropical forages to enhance productivity of monogastric animals with low-income farmers in Nicaragua and Honduras’, he attracts attention by trying to convince the audience not to forget Central America in research. “At the Tropentag there is hardly any work presented from Central America. Although we ‘only’ talk about 50 million people or so, which is relatively few in comparison with Africa and Asia, we have to take this part of the world into consideration.” His enthusiasm for this region is clear, but will he also pass the test to explain his research to people outside the ‘scientific bubble’?