The Experimental Health Research Conference (EHRC) is an annual meeting hosted by the Faculty of Health Sciences at UiT The Arctic University of Norway, bringing together researchers, clinicians, and collaborators to share knowledge, build connections, and advance experimental health research. This year's edition was held on June 10 and 11 and covered themes from vascular biology, organ-to-organ crosstalk, women's health and epidemiological resources available at UiT. Many young researchers were among those presenting, organising, and contributing.

This is exactly the kind of scientific environment PYRO exists to support. We were proud to be part of it.

Outreach: A stand at the conference

PYRO had a stand at this year's EHRC, where we had the opportunity to meet students and researchers at all career stages, engage in interesting conversations, and represent PYRO. Whether it was a brief introduction or a longer discussion about research and career paths, every exchange was a reminder of why showing up in person matters.

 Poster Awards: Recognizing excellent science

PYRO contributed to the conference's poster awards, grading both the scientific content and the presentation quality of posters submitted by young researchers. The standard was high, and choice was not easy. We were happy that so many young researchers, from Master’s and PhD students to Postdoctoral researchers and associate professors.

The poster awards went to:

Rikke Eriksen, for her poster "Unprocess your diet: the relationship between protein, food intake, and ultra-processed food"

Helene Finbak, for her poster "A cross-validated catalogue of testis-enriched non-coding RNAs"

Two well-deserved winners. Congratulations to both young researchers!

Co-worker Award: A colleague worth celebrating

This year, PYRO sponsored a co-worker award to recognize an outstanding colleague:

Kajangi Gnanachandran. She was nominated by multiple colleagues and described by as the "sunshine of the team". She was nominated for her optimism, resilience, and consistent willingness to support students and visiting lab members.

There is a detail worth sharing: as the person coordinating the award process within the EHRC committee, Kajangi removed herself from consideration out of fairness. Both the EHRC committee and PYRO agreed that her contributions were too significant to go unacknowledged, and so the award was created specifically to recognize her. Even though her time with us was brief, the impression she made was not. She brought warmth, energy, and genuine care to everyone around her. Congratulations, Kajangi. You earned this.

Community: Growing the network of young researchers

Beyond the awards the EHRC gave us something equally valuable: the opportunity to connect. We had a stand throughout the conference and spent time talking with students and researchers at all career stages. Several new faces expressed interest in joining our mailing list, and we came away with a stronger and wider network of young researchers at UiT.

That is what events like this are for. Science grows when people talk to each other, and we are already looking forward to the next one.

Autor: Eike Struck