To finish off 2024 and reflect on the 35 episodes of The Grand Challengers Podcast so far, here is a very special episode. Guests from across the show got to ask me a question of their choosing and I have compiled them into a special episode titled "Tables Turned". In this episode, we look into 22 questions relating to the origin story and plans for the podcast, what it has taught me, my life and career choices, me answering my own questions and advice I can offer. Join me in this beautiful moment of looking back on the past two years of the show and hear about the challenges and fun times that I have experienced!

The podcast will return in 2025 with brand new episodes, brand new guests and even some familiar faces! Until then, I hope you enjoyed the listening experience so far and that this episode perhaps awakens your curiosity to check out the collection of existing stories offered by many inspiring individuals across broad ranges of topics.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Astral Dance by Jimit (Check out more of Jimit's tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0hc1IxPxpmUgEIZGGUGrvm?si=z_uif82xQoqAqUy8KpB7JQ)

Chapters:
0:00 Preamble
0:21 Intro
1:36 Introducing the special episode
3:34 Why the podcast
5:28 The Ivory Tower
8:05 How long
9:37 Bloopers or not
11:54 A guest wishlist
15:41 An expanded guest wishlist
19:03 Effect of the podcast on oneself
21:24 How the podcast gives me hope
23:17 How have things changed across the production
26:41 Life and languages
28:43 Why Engineering, what else
37:22 Moving countries
41:18 Home is where the heart is
42:34 Staying in Switzerland
45:35 More general life advice
49:39 From my own PhD supervisor
51:25 My questions thrown back at me
51:45 If you had a magic wand?
54:09 Advice for young professionals
1:00:37 Wrap up - support the show
1:02:20 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Yannick Back, Research Fellow at the Unit of Environmental Engineering, Innsbruck University shares an alternative way of looking at planning for urban heat mitigation, which is the intrinsic link between water and energy fluxes. We discuss how Yannick has harnessed the power of remote sensing (both aerial and satellite data sets) and geographic information systems to develop new ways of assessing and mitigating urban heat in cities. We also hear Yannick's take on what is needed for alpine areas and the world to adapt to the challenges of climate change.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and Ice Hockey
5:16 Austria, not to be confused with Australia
11:46 Getting into urban heat
18:33 How a geographer integrates with engineers
26:41 The rapid fine-scale approach and thermal comfort
35:20 Adding computational fluid dynamics
38:59 Surface energy fluxes - an alternative perspective to heat
45:27 Is there a “magic” number for urban heat mitigation?
50:31 The essential ink between water and energy
54:07 Key future challenges for alpine regions
55:58 The global data availability question
58:37 Yannick’s future research plans
1:00:34 Urban climate models vs. data ubiquity
1:02:51 Q&A Start
1:03:13 What inspires you?
1:05:18 Key event, person, book
1:07:57 If you had a magic wand?
1:11:04 Biggest challenge in career to date
1:14:59 Time management
1:17:08 Advice for young researchers
1:17:52 Where can people reach you?
1:18:58 Final Message
1:21:39 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Denise Mitrano, Assistant Professor in the Environmental System Science Department at ETH Zurich sheds some light into the topic of plastics pollution, from macro and micro to nano. Trained as an analytical chemist, we hear how Denise is using her skills to better understand how we can quantify, replace and reduce the sources for better environmental and human health protection. We also reflect on the role that science needs to play in future legislation around environmental protection and some tips on being an academic in a very dynamic discipline.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and getting out of your comfort zone
6:25 Discovering environmental chemistry and nanomaterials
13:17 Contaminants of emerging concern
16:16 Denise’s journey to Switzerland
18:00 Plastics 101
24:53 Two historical examples of plastics management
27:23 Can we create a plastic-free world?
30:36 Denise’s Research Pillar 1 - Analytical
34:40 Denise’s Research Pillar 2 - Transport and Fate
41:23 Metal-doped Microplastics
47:39 Denise’s Research Pillar 3 - Policy and Regulation
51:43 Denise’s Future Research Trajectory
57:43 Q&A Start
58:00 What inspires you?
58:56 If you had a magic wand?
1:01:16 Key event, person, book
1:02:59 Time management
1:05:07 Biggest challenge in career to date
1:07:44 Advice for young researchers
1:08:44 Where can people reach you?
1:09:07 Final Message
1:09:45 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/