Due to the successful experience of previous years UCLM scientist were invited to participate in the initiative “Interview a scientist” for the International Day of Women and Girls in Science were students at different high schools can interview women scientist. The event took place on the 11th February and Natividad Isabel Navarro Pacheco from UCLM addressed the questions of around 80 students.

The schools from Castilla-La Mancha region in Spain that participated in the event were:

The dissemination activity was performed by videoconference. There was a high interaction between the students and the researcher. They were curious about SCENARIOS work and asked several things regarding PFAS and our work performed in the laboratory.

The students were unaware of PFAS substances and asked a lot about it. About where PFAS would be found, why they are studied, how it affects them directly (referring not only to students but to human beings).

Then we moved on to the remediation part, which is our work at UCLM, where we explained what we were developing within SCENARIOS and they found both the use of biochar technology and our work with worms curious and interesting.

It was an entertaining day with many questions, as there were different students and different schools, some questions were repetitive. The conclusion is that it aroused their curiosity about PFAS, substances that they were unaware of and that they did not know can be found in many places. They found the work of the SCENARIOS project regarding the problem of PFAS interesting as well as important.

We are looking forward to carry on communicating the work done in SCENARIOS to the general public, increasing awareness on PFAS and other forever chemicals.