Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

Although we are at different levels, we have the same language among us

Chemistry Haritz Sardon Muguruza (Donostia, 1983) Polymers and Advanced Materials of the UPV/EHU: He completed his doctoral thesis in the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Technology, where he has been researching with great success. In fact, he currently runs his own laboratory (Sardon Lab), which has received numerous awards, some of them international. The latest recognition comes from the Royal Spanish Society of Chemistry: The Research Excellence Award. Sardon sees it as a boost to further research into the development of sustainable polymers. He has also answered questions related to his field of research.

What has surprised you the most since you started working?

What has surprised me the most, in my area of research, is that people are very simple. It doesn’t matter who you talk to, whether at a conference or on a trip, it doesn’t matter if you talk to a distinguished professor or a PhD student. They get on the same level as you, they're all ready to help.

For example, if you go to a very prestigious professor to do your postdoctoral degree, even if you don’t have a place there, you will be redirected to another laboratory.

So to speak, even though we are on different levels, we have the same language among us. This surprised me a lot at first and helps a lot. Because before I was more introverted at work, but seeing how easy it was to ask anyone anything, I became more open. You learn a lot from that attitude.

What revolution or discovery would you like to witness?

I'd like two things. On the one hand, on a social level, I would like to become a little more anti-technological. I'm not saying I want you to be against technology. Of course, we owe the development we have to technology. But it's a daily refusal to use it for certain things

back to the base. The truth is that I am already seeing that there are people who are starting to do it and I think it is beneficial for society.

For example, I decided not to use social media. Now I only have Linkedin and I use it for work. For personal relationships, I stay for a coffee or have a conversation instead of a Whatsapp message exchange. Or instead of spending time on Instagram, I do other things.

The other has to do with my research. In fact, I do research on the sustainability of plastics and I find them to be very useful materials. But we should recycle much more, and it is not possible to recycle 100%, but it is possible to recycle more than 50% or 70%. I would like to have the opportunity to reuse this material.