The event kicked off on Friday with a visit to the “Lavadom,” the Eifel Volcanoes Museum. During a guided tour of the lava cellar, participants learned about the difficult working conditions of the former basalt quarries. Back then, a horse was more valuable than a person because it transported the heavy stones to the surface. The workers’ staple food at the time was beer from the breweries, which was also stored in the basalt caves. However, it was not safe from theft by the workers themselves. As a result, the miners were paid not only with money but also with beer.
The next day began with an informative discussion. We talked about hopes and needs, problems and fears about the future, as well as success stories before, during, and after college. The most important topics are:
A mentoring program: We’d like to create more opportunities for young mineralogists to connect with established professionals in the field. For this, we need you and your help (see below).
More courses on skills that aren’t sufficiently covered in the degree program: How do I write my first publication? How do I conduct myself at a scientific conference? How do I create a scientific poster?
Career opportunities for graduates of geochemistry, mineralogy, petrology, and similar fields should be promoted more extensively at universities.
Universities and institutes located close to one another in the same region should cooperate more closely. For example, courses from other universities could be accepted for credit.
After the workshop sessions, we headed out into the field in the afternoon. We followed a route featuring typical outcrops of the Vulkaneifel to the famous mofettes of Lake Laach. In the late afternoon, our field trip guide, Carsten Münker (University of Cologne), joined us. We learned how to find “the highway” in the Wingertsbergwand. The day ended with a cozy barbecue evening at the Naturfreundehaus.
On Sunday, we headed out into the field again. Thanks to the kind support of the German Volcanological Society, all participants were provided with the necessary safety gear to tour a quarry. Our highlights were the numerous finds of brilliant blue hauyne [Na₃Ca(Si₃Al₃)O₁₂(SO₄)].
Around noon, we returned and said our goodbyes before everyone headed home. As YoungMins, the annual meeting gave us new insights into the hopes and concerns of students and new members. A heartfelt thank you to the DMG, whose support made this meeting possible. We’d also like to extend a huge thank you to Carsten Münker, the German Volcanological Society, and the team at the Naturfreundehaus Laacher See, as well as to all participants for a successful annual meeting!
Back at the various institutes, we’d like to focus specifically on the mentoring program.
This project is designed to help early-career mineralogists find their professional direction. To that end, we’re looking for mineralogists who’d like to share their knowledge from various professional fields. The goal is to show just how diverse the career options are within our field of specialization and how to land your dream job. Please feel free to contact us if you’d be interested in connecting with students, doctoral candidates, and postdocs to share what your day-to-day work is like.
And as always, if you like what we do, come join our monthly online meetings! You can find all the details on the DMG website under “Working Groups” or by emailing youngmins@dmg-home.org.
Best regards, Your YoungMins
Rebecca Volkmann & Christoph Moeller ∙ Potsdam
