Dalhousie PhD students inject energy into Falling Walls Lab pitch competition in Berlin

They came from around the world. Eighty presenters selected from 1,850 entrants representing 88 countries from Brazil and Botswana, Saudi Arabia to the United States. Among the global cavalcade in Berlin presenting at the Falling Walls Lab finals were two Dalhousie PhD in chemistry students, Sarah Martell and Tina Taskovic.

“It felt awesome. I was nervous but there is such a great sense of community. We’re all very proud of each other for just getting the chance to be here. As soon as I got up to pitch, I felt confident because the audience really responded so positively,” said Martell, who won her spot in the global finals by taking first place at Dalhousie’s Falling Walls Lab – Atlantic Canada event in September.

The global competition took place Monday (Nov. 7) on the first day of the three-day Falling Walls Science Summit. This leading international interdisciplinary forum shines a spotlight on the world’s most significant scientific breakthroughs and provokes dialogue between global science leaders from academia, business, politics, media, and civil society to debate the potential of breakthroughs to solve our greatest challenges and shape a sustainable future. Held annually on the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the conference aims to identify the next walls to fall in science and society that will ultimately change our world.

Sarah Martell. (Photo courtesty of Falling Walls Foundation)

Martell’s pitch focused on the revolutionary potential of an innovation she has helped bring to life researching in the lab of Dalhousie’s Dr. Mita Dasog. She is working to create a clean and sustainable method to produce hydrogen fuel. Her breakthrough approach synthesizes porous silicon nanoparticles that react with water to generate hydrogen fuel whenever and wherever it is needed with no toxic by-products.

Validation on the global stage

Fellow chemist Taskovic took the stage shortly after to reveal yet another ground-breaking discovery, a newly configured battery with the potential to last 50 years. She described how her “autopsies” on dead batteries in the lab of Dalhousie’s Dr. Jeff Dahn led to the innovation and its exciting potential to help us move away from fossil fuels and adopt renewable energy sources like solar and wind.

Tina Taskovic delivers her presentation. (Andrew Riley photo)

“It was an extremely proud moment for Dalhousie to have two researchers on this global stage sharing energy innovations so desperately needed around the world,” says Dr. Alice Aiken, Dalhousie’s vice president research and innovation who is also attending the conference. “Their research is drawing substantial interest from potential collaborators. It’s amazing to see momentum building for their ideas. Now that the seeds are planted, I’m excited to watch how they grow.”

For Taskovic, her Falling Walls Lab experience is already sending her in an exciting new direction. She was invited by Research in Germany, an initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, to attend Innovation Week after the Falling Walls Science Summit. Created for researchers who aim to establish startups based on scientific innovation, the entrepreneurship intensive program provides workshops and lectures at one of Germany’s leading universities of technology. Taskovic will go to RWTH Aachen University where she will experience their startup programs and receive support to develop a business plan.

“There are very few opportunities for someone at my career stage to have a literal global stage to share their research and to be in a room with so many like-minded people from around the world,” says Taskovic. “I feel so validated in what I’m doing. It’s an amazing reminder of what it’s all for. Suddenly it all makes sense.”