Rami hails from Syria and he loves connecting with people. Rami is pursuing a PhD in Organic Agricultural Sciences at the University of Kassel, Witzenhausen, Germany. His passion for film led him to the position of student reporter at Tropentag 2017. This was his chance to shine. He would be able to capture on film current research affecting food security globally. So, he hopped on a train to get to Bonn and tell the Tropentag story. Otherwise, he hopes build networks at the conference and improve his overall skills as a science reporter.
Kofi is Ghanaian, and studying Sustainable International Agriculture with a main focus on International Agribusiness and Rural Development Economics at the University of Göttingen. He first learnt about the Tropentag from his University’s newsletter. As a student reporter, he wants to use his skills in social media, and photography, while learning more about blogging, video and photo editing as well as interview techniques from a journalistic point of view. He was excited at the prospect to both learn and then practice his skills at this year’s Tropentag. On Sunday, he got onto the train expecting an insightful and challenging experience, and above all, to have fun.
Hello Pia, please introduce yourself to us. I am Pia from Switzerland, I am about to finish my Masters in Applied Agricultural Sciences at the Bern University of Applied Sciences with a focus on value chains and rural development. My core topics are rural livelihoods and innovation in agriculture as well as participatory approaches.
What are your tasks for the upcoming three days? I am part of the video team and therefore responsible for the production of video material, I will collect the voices and opinions of the participants.
What are your expectations for Tropentag 2017? Lots of lively discussions about the future of agriculture, both in the sessions as well as online. Obviously thanks to our incredible online coverage. Also, an enhanced mutual understanding of people from different backgrounds. Productive, useful conclusions and outputs by the participants.
How did you come here? I attended last year’s Tropentag, where I presented a poster, and was so inspired that I wanted to come back to see the conference from a different perspective. I am especially interested because I am in (science) communications and media.
Dreams, visions and the will to take action brought Megan from the United States to the University of Helsinki and even further to Bonn, thanks to an a invitation from her Agroecology department. She hopes to contribute this year to the output of the Student Reporter Team through articles, pictures and film. Before coming to Bonn, Meg, how she prefers to be called, spent the last year generating scientific texts. At Tropentag, she is looking forward to reaching the general public by posts and pictures digestible for everyone, not just super scientists.
One advantage she sees in working in an international team like ours, is learning how to say cheers in new languages, meeting people in her discipline, and learning how to best communicate science. Meg's first impression of Germany were the cool and comfortable chairs at the airport in Munich. She had a five hour layover, and enjoyed good German coffee after years of dark tar, known as Finnish coffee. Strong and energetic, she is ready to further develop her journalistic skills. She hopes to enrich her understanding of sustainable food system transformation. And who knows? Maybe she will also have the chance to talk about her personal passions, collecting mushrooms and ice fishing.