Visitors, near and far
Even in turbulent times, visiting team members are integral to the aquaculture team.
05/05/2020
Earlier this year, Group Leader and Career Track Fellow Diego Robledo welcomed three visitors to the Roslin Institute: Alba Cortés Coego, Cristina Gómez Pereira, and Pablo Jácome Ferrer. Alba, Cristina, and Pablo journeyed to Edinburgh to work alongside the Aquaculture team, but unfortunately, their visit was cut short by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Among several other Aquaculture team visitors, Alba, Christina, and Pablo wisely chose to return home for the duration of the worldwide pandemic...but this doesn't mean their work went unappreciated or that their journey was in vain.
"When I heard about the opportunity to go to the Roslin Institute, I did not hesitate at all," said Pablo. "For me it was a great opportunity to know other ways of working in an unbeatable place. People were very welcoming and kind to us they always paid attention if we had a problem and gave us advice both in carrying out the work and in other respects."
As an MSc Genetics and Genomics student, Alba took an interest in Roslin when undertaking her external practice. "There was a good opportunity for me to apply and learn bioinformatics as a tool to work with genomic data and running RNASeq analyses," she explained. "I enjoyed my time and the experience of seeing how science is out of my university."
Cristina visited the University from A Coruña in Spain; like Alba, she used the trip as part of her MSc's external practices. "I have to say that my visit to the Roslin Institute was a very positive experience," she writes. "Just the building itself creates a good atmosphere and a place you will like to be in. The people that I had the opportunity to meet were very kind and friendly; I enjoyed the lunchtime chats and good communication and 'vibes' during meetings. I'm only sad that I had to leave so soon due to the outbreak, but I hope in the future I can work in a place like this with such amazing colleagues and this kind of environment."
Alba agreed. "I enjoyed my time at Roslin; all the members were so kind and made us feel part of the team, even during our short stay." Now safely back in Spain, she adds, "Thank you so much to Diego and his team for this learning opportunity and enriching experience."
While the aquaculture team at Roslin was sad to see them go, there's nothing more important than prioritising safety and support for all team members, be they near or far, permanent or visiting.
"Thank you all for these two weeks," writes Pablo. "I would have liked to stay the whole month, but the situation is what it is. The best of luck and I hope you are all well."
The aquaculture team sends support, solidarity, and gratitude to its visiting team members. Especially in times such as these, it's integral to be grateful for teammates, and to ensure we work hard to always support them.
It was a real pleasure to have Alba, Cristina and Pablo at the Institute. I think their joyful and friendly attitude fitted perfectly with our team and spirit! Although their visit was unfortunately brief, I am glad they enjoyed their time at the Roslin Institute. They progressed a lot in the time they were here, and I am sure there are great things ahead waiting for them. I hope our paths will cross again in the near future!