Vietnamese scientist in UK inspires passion for scientific study

Nguyen Thi Kim Thanh, a Vietnamese professor at University College London (UCL), who won many prestigious international awards for her scientific research, says she hopes to inspire students, especially the disadvantaged in London, to pursue their passion for scientific study.

In 2019, Thanh was awarded the prestigious Royal Society Rosalind Franklin Medal by the Commonwealth Academy of Sciences for her research achievements in the field of nanomaterials for biomedicine.

She used the prize money to organise a science camp in April this year in Wiltshire region of the UK to inspire high school 8th – 10th grade students to perform scientific research.

As many as 46 high school students in London, mostly girls with difficult circumstances or those from minority communities took part in the camp.

This event provided students with an opportunity to not only immerse themselves in science but also develop their independence and confidence as they work with those from different grades and diverse backgrounds.

Thanh's science camp offered a venue for students to implement practical and interesting scientific experiments in the field of advanced nanotechnology under direct instructions from Thanh and her colleagues. The work featured the use of nanotechnology to detect and treat diseases such as cancer.

Thanh expressed her pleasure in organizing the camp, affirming that she will continue to hold extracurricular activities at UCL for students.

The scientist said she will expand cooperation with high schools to increase the number of students studying biology, chemistry and physics subjects with A-level (advanced) by 50% by 2025-2026.

The scientific camp comes as part of efforts to further promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) education and inspire the next generation of scientists, Thanh said.