One of the signature features of the CONDJUST modus operandi is our team retreats. Maybe I am being grandiose. After all, we have only had two of them. But they have both worked rather well and it is important to understand why.
A significant factor has to be the magic of Catalunya itself. Here is a region that is blessed with beautiful coastlines, gorgeous hills, the Pyrenees and beautiful towns. It’s a pleasant place to lose oneself in and is brimming with capacious accomodation that is highly cost effective. If ever you face a choice of leading an ERC in, for example, Cambridgeshire (to choose one place at random) or Catalunya, well, check the altitudinal range of Cambridgeshire and the masia that they have on booking.com before deciding.
I regret these landscapes now face an ERC overpopulation crisis and are now full. Please try and find a space in Valencia
Another is the venues themselves within this countryside. As you may have gathered from the summer symposium report, there seems to be loads of venue owners who understand what large groups need to enjoy themselves in remote farm houses: a well equipped kitchen, spacious clean rooms, the odd swimming pool . . .
On the left: Karla, Andrea and Danielle share the hardships of doing a PhD at UAB over breakfast by the swimming pool. On the right, Valeria reaches exactly the same conclusions as her comrades, despite being next to an entirely different pool.
And then there is the fact that these are excellent venues for inviting other researchers, and spending concentrated time learning from them, and enjoying their input, advice and wisdom in environments which seem to bring the best out of people. In these pictures you will see such luminaries as Tobias Kuemmerle, Anwesha Dutta, Nitin Rai, Rosaleen Duffy and the Mediterranean sea. In our next meeting we will be linking up with the ‘Just Earth Observation for Conservation Project’, led by the amazing Rose Pritchard.
We welcome visiting researchers. Please get in touch if you want to join.
But above all it is the fact that this sort of concentrated time away build understanding and support for each other. We get to really spend quality time dwelling on each other’s project and our shared dilemmas. It is a lovely thing to give, and receive that sort of attention. Unless that is, a golden eagle should happen to pass by, in which case all the bird watchers stop caring one jot for the research dilemmas of their colleagues and reach for their binoculars.
Quality listening time before the golden eagle
And after it.
But if there are no birds in sight then we also cook for each other. In the last place we discovered a wood fired pizza oven. We celebrate birthdays, past and imminent. We go on collective walks, bird watching as we go.
Unfortunately for Ryan the golden eagle is behind him. Meanwhile in the dining room Andrea and Karla are trying to work out a good reason for the empty wine glasses before Dan and Rosaleen (right) come back.
Preparing for Ausias
If it all seems a bit too idyllic, well it probably is. I mean this seriously, captions above notwithstanding. Because this is a research project. Empathy in research, mutual support for different projects, in depth presentation, understanding and engagement and so on are all fantastic components of a strong research team. The synergies that are emerging from this project owe much to that.
But a research project has to be founded on rigourous work. And that requires us to disagree with each other, to challenge, to dispute and to contest. If these extraordinary venues, incredible scenery and wonderful food make robust disagreement more vigorous then it is all to the good. As a PI there are few greater satisfactions than fostering an environment where people can constructively disagree, and welcome those challenges from their colleagues.
And if they do not? Then they will prove unsatisfactory. But maybe the generosity and energy of our time together thus far bodes well for such a future.