Dr Joshua Makepeace

Chemistry grabbed me because of the combination of getting to do experiments and make new materials with the intellectual challenge of trying to understand the results. As I learnt more about the ways in which chemistry research can contribute to the environmental challenges that we face, I decided that I wanted to pursue it as a career. My interest in chemistry research, specifically, was sparked by an undergraduate research project I was fortunate to conduct in conjunction with the South Australian Museum. I was investigating the structure and composition of some black sand crystals which were found in the logbooks of William Bligh (of mutiny on the Bounty infamy) in order to try and understand where they might have come from on the perilous voyage he undertook from Tahiti to West Timor. It was a fantastic detective story and a great example of the versatility of chemical research.

I feel so fortunate to have had people throughout my life who took time to guide me or share their passion. This started back in school with teachers who shared their environmental concerns or fostered my confidence, and continued in my undergraduate. I was the student who always turned up to office hours, and my lecturers were unfailingly patient and encouraging, taking the chance to extend my horizons. In my research career, I'm immensely grateful to Bill David for many inspiring moments over the years which have excited me about the potential of the work I'm doing and instilled a real appreciation for the beauty of solid structures.

As an LGBT scientist, I sometimes wondered whether I ever would fully belong in the scientific community. Whilst I don't think my sexuality has a direct relationship with my ability as a scientist, not feeling that sense of belonging certainly hindered my ability to be fully present at work, and made me less comfortable pursuing the career. I'm so grateful that when I arrived in the UK, there were role models of LGBT chemists who I could look to at the top of their game. It was a huge relief.

I think good research is built on an open-minded and rigorous pursuit of knowledge. Beyond that, I would say that good research culture stems from valuing the people who do research. This means celebrating people’s individual ways that they contribute and seeking out diverse viewpoints.

All the best parts of my job involve working with others; it’s the interactions with the students and researchers I work with that put the spark into the day, just having a chat about an interesting result in the corridor or brainstorming future research ideas. Lots of the most exciting science I’ve been involved with is in situ experiments at our central facilities like ISIS and Diamond. They’re incredible monuments to scientific teamwork, and the teams there have been critical to making our experiments a success, from instrument scientists who know their technique inside out to technicians who design and maintain gas equipment. I always feel so privileged that we get to bring along our little samples to these phenomenal facilities.