Starting over
Anyone who has moved to another city, country, or continent knows the feeling. You don't just adapt to a new climate, food, or culture. You also have to rebuild your life, your routines, and, in many ways, your identity. You find yourself answering the same questions again: Who am I? What do I do? What am I passionate about?
From my trip to South America last winter (the South American summer). Near a river in southern Chile, Patagonia.
By the end of my years in Finland, life had found its rhythm. I had built a strong network of friends and collaborators, people knew what I enjoyed doing, and many also knew what I could contribute professionally. It felt like a train already in motion, propelled by all the effort I had invested over the years.
Minutes after my doctoral dissertation.
This year, I finally settled in Germany. I've had a lot of support with the practical side of starting a new life, from bureaucracy to learning the language, and I'm grateful for that. It's not the first time I've started from scratch, but after the momentum I had built over the past few years, it sometimes feels as though I've pressed the reset button.
A few months ago I received my German tax ID, and recently I got the official confirmation of my freelance business, Panchita Prieto Science Communication. It may seem like a small administrative step, but to me it represents the opportunity to continue building the work I've been shaping over the last few years, now from a new country.
I've had the chance to work with several research groups (and with some in the talking stage. Exciting!). I've been learning new tools, improving my communication skills, and slowly becoming more confident in German. I've also started finding clients online. But I know that the next important step is building a new professional network here.
That's why I'll be using this website and my social media a bit differently from now on. I want to share not only the projects I'm working on, but also the process behind them: how complex scientific ideas become presentations, graphical abstracts, infographics, illustrations, or other visual communication materials.
Selfie from my desk.
