Author: Carrie Soderman

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From magma to magnets: a summer of fieldwork in Greenland investigating critical metal behaviour in alkaline intrusions

This summer Carrie Soderman, Owen Weller and Charlie Beard headed to Greenland to investigate how metals critical for green technologies form.

Rare earth elements (REEs) are classed as ‘critical metals’ in modern society, meaning a group of metals and minerals that cannot be easily substituted in technology but whose supply is at risk. In particular, the REEs are a vital part of green energy transition technologies, such as the magnets that go inside motors for wind turbines and electric vehicles. Demand for these elements is therefore expected to increase rapidly in the coming decades.

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Carrie Soderman on interning with the Environmental Audit Committee

Carrie in the lab, wearing protective gear and stood in front of a mass spectrometer

From February to April this year, in the midst of lockdown and halfway through the third year of my PhD, I took 3 months away from geochemistry to work with the Environmental Audit Committee, a House of Commons Select Committee. This opportunity was part of an amazing policy internship scheme run by UKRI, who oversee the funding of my PhD. Although not sure that I wanted to pursue a policy career, applying to the scheme seemed like a great opportunity to learn more about the career path and develop transferable skills.

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Back to school: introducing GCSE geographers to the geology of Dorset

In June, after the mad rush of exams and vivas, I found myself back at my secondary school in Birmingham, boarding a coach with some of my old geography teachers and over 60 Year 10 students. I had been asked to come along to highlight some of the amazing geology on show along the Jurassic coast.

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Exploring the igneous geology of Rum

In July 2017, I found myself on my first non-compulsory fieldtrip as an undergraduate, in a group of 5 with two academic staff members and two PhD students heading to the Isle of Rum in the Scottish Inner Hebrides. The trip had been planned initially for my Masters project, but with Rum such a famous geological locality, everyone had work they wanted to do there.

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