This talk is an activity from the FEBS Junior Section, an initiative set up by students and young researchers from some of the FEBS Constituent Societies. Each month members of the FEBS Junior Section organize an online event on either a research or a career topic. This talk was coordinated by HDBMB Junior Section, the junior section of the Croatian Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (HDBMB).

• Speaker: Dr Marko Košiček, from the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb, Croatia
• Topic: "Synapses and soundbites: how a neuroscientist became a science communicator"
• Date and time: 30 October 2025, 18:00 CET
• Registration link: 

  https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_VHP16fpXQ02e3PqtVS5Jqg

Participants will have the opportunity to stay for an after-talk hangout to have an informal chat with the speaker, members of the FEBS Junior Section, and other participants.

Abstract

Science doesn’t end in the lab—it begins there. What happens when your passion for science extends beyond research? My journey took me from the lab bench, working with neurons and synapses, to television studios and ministry offices, and back to the Institute, where I now coordinate public engagement activities. Along the way, I have learned that communication is the most powerful tool scientists possess to inspire change (and what are soundbites, which we both love and hate).

In this talk, I will share what I learned while moving from neuroscience and biochemistry into science communication and public engagement, and how each experience reshaped my understanding of what it means to be a scientist. It is a story about following your interests, embracing uncertainty, and using science to make a difference—wherever you are.

Biosketch

Marko Košiček is the coordinator of Science Popularization at the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb, where he leads outreach activities, organizes public engagement initiatives, and collaborates with schools, NGOs, and industry partners. With a background in chemistry, he spent a decade as a researcher studying the molecular mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease before shifting his focus to science communication. His passion for engaging the public led him to win the Croatian and international FameLab competition, host the popular science TV show Third Element, and play a key role in major outreach events like the Science Festival, Science Picnic, and Researchers’ Night. He was awarded the State Award for Popularisation and Promotion of Science in 2014. From 2018 to mid-2020, he was Chief Advisor at the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia.

The FEBS Junior Section

Want to join this platform for young European life scientists? Learn more about our initiative, check out the Room for the FEBS Junior Section and – if you do not have a junior section yet – read this post about how to set one up!

^{Photo by notorious v1ruS on Unsplash.}