New series 'ChemEng Conversations' launches today

Find out more about the new series designed and produced by Chemical Engineering PhD student Ravi Shankar

ChemEng Conversations is a new talk show and YouTube series which is centred around engaging in insightful conversations with the highly talented staff and students in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London. Through these conversations, we hope to provide a platform for each academic or researcher to promote the cutting-edge research being conducted in their respective groups.

We will strive to discuss the most recent research interests of our interviewees, highlight exciting projects that prospective staff and students can get involved in, and, where possible, provide a tour of the state-of-the-art facilities on offer. At the same time, we hope that this series will be a beneficial tool for prospective postgraduate and undergraduate students in guiding them to choose research topics for doctoral programmes, postdoctoral fellowships, or Masters research projects.

One of the main aspects that makes ChemEng Conversations so unique is that each conversation will be tailored to our interviewee. We, and I’m sure all of you, would like to get to know more about the members of the Department outside of the workplace. Therefore, we’re going to make sure that we dedicate a special segment in each our shows to fun questions, for example related to their hobbies and interests, or perhaps who their dream celebrity dinner companion would be! Please do make sure you tune in for this part, as it promises to be entertaining!

For me personally, this project is very special, and one that I have been planning on launching for some time now. Having enjoyed such a wonderful learning experience throughout my undergraduate studies, and now pursuing a PhD, here in the Department, I was very keen on contributing back to everyone who has helped me get to this stage. What better way than to provide a unique platform to showcase the tremendous talent and expertise of our staff and students?

Our inaugural episode is a special length feature with none other than our very own Professor Omar Matar, the Vice Dean for Education at Imperial College and the current Director of Research in the Department of Chemical Engineering. We enjoyed a wonderful conversation, in which we discussed the recent work of his research group, his leadership role in the College, the state-of-the-art facilities in the Matar Fluids Lab, and so much more.

Following a year of planning I’m happy to introduce the first episode of ChemEng Conversations! We hope that you have fun, enjoy following the work in the Department, and hopefully join us for a conversation! We would love to have you on the show, so please do get in touch with us!

I would like to take this opportunity to extend my utmost gratitude and say a big thank you to my wonderful team, without whom this project would not be possible. My thanks go to Genevieve Timmins, who provided wonderful support in establishing the framework of the show and overseeing the behind-the-scenes logistics. Equally to Sara West, who has been an excellent support in handling the launch of the series and organising promotions. To my supervisor, Dr. Camille Petit, for encouraging me to pursue this project, to the Department for providing us with the facilities and equipment to record our shows. Of course, to my family and friends for their amazing support as always.

With that, it’s time to get this show on the road!