In this episode, I speak with Professor Taofikat Adesalu, a professor of Botany in Algal Ecology and Limnology at the University of Lagos. We spoke about her childhood desire to study medicine and her transition to Botany. It started as a change of course form but was solidified one afternoon after looking at water samples from the Niger Delta under a microscope as an undergraduate student. Our conversation highlights the infrastructure and funding gaps hindering academic research in Nigeria, the importance of public engagement in research and policy development, as well as the importance of professionals giving back to their society through volunteering and mentoring especially as a way to encourage young aspiring students, even more so those from low socio-economic backgrounds amongst many other features of the life of a Nigerian academic.
I hope you enjoy this episode with the first scientist I ever knew; my mother!
Connect with Prof. Taofikat Adesalu :
Media Recommendation:
Book: Don’t be Sad by Dr. Aidh al-Qarni
Sound effects from BBC Sound Effects and Pixabay