Hello VMSG. In this edition we’ll hear a bit about what went on at VMSG-MDSG 2025 in Dublin as well as details about recent recipients of VMSG awards and Student Presentation Prizes. we also have a reminder about the upcoming deadline for Student Bursaries as well as hearing about what some recent Bursary recipients have been up to. We also have some introductions from new VMSG Committee members and the usual roundup of upcoming conferences of interest. – David Neave (Newsletter Editor)
In addition to showcasing the breadth of research within the VMSG community, the 2025 VMSG-MDSG joint annual meeting aimed to showcase the synergy between volcanology/igneous petrology and economic geology research, highlighting exciting opportunities for future collaboration. This was thought to be particularly timely, given an increasing policy interest in critical raw materials – many of which are associated with magmatic systems – and a general funding shift towards more applied science, both in the UK and Europe. To achieve this, the Local Organising Committee curated targeted “shared sessions” covering topics overlapping both special interest groups, invited Dr Kathryn Goodenough (BGS) to share her experience working at the interface of igneous petrology and mining geology, and organised a panel discussion on “effective academic-industry collaboration” with representation from both universities and major mining companies.
Alongside promoting cross-disciplinarity, the organising committee were also very keen to provide additional support for ECRs a dedicated ECR networking evening. The idea was for students and postdocs to meet one another and socialise, both within and between the VMSG and MDSG communities, while also having an opportunity to receive careers advice from a more senior colleagues working in a range of different sectors.
Feedback on the meeting has been very positive, with both VMSG and MDSG delegates (including industry representatives) saying that they really enjoyed the shared sessions. While some presentations were outside of their usual interest (i.e. a little more towards “VMSG” or “MDSG”), people seem to have genuinely enjoyed the exposure to a greater breadth of science and come out of the meeting with new research ideas. Feedback from ECRs, both at the ECR Forum and after the meeting was that the networking evening was fun and useful in terms of career advice; there is a strong consensus that VMSG should try to continue running similar events going forward.
Now that the dust has settled, the Local Organising Committee would like to just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who made the conference a huge success: fieldtrip and workshop organisers, student helpers, session chairs, invited speakers and panellists and, of course, the conference sponsors without which we would not have been able to run such a successful event. We hope that all delegates enjoyed seeing Dublin and experiencing a bit of Irish culture, and we look forward to seeing you all back over this side of the water very soon.
Slán go fóill! – Mike Stock (TCD) on behalf of the Dublin LOC. On behalf of the VMSG community, the VMSG Committee would again like to thank the team in Dublin for a super conference!
Every year VMSG confers awards on members across our community. You can find more about the awards here. This year we were thrilled to celebrate the following awardees in Dublin.
The VMSG Award: Mike Heap (University of Strasbourg)
The Zeiss Post-doctoral Keynote Award: Michal Camejo-Harry (University of Oxford; remote presentation)
Amongst stiff competition from lots of excellent contributions we were also pleased to make the following awards for student presentations:
The Geoff Brown Prize for Best Student Poster: Abigail Robinson (Birkbeck, University of London)
Honourable mentions: Jasmine Dibben (University of Exeter)
The Bob Hunter Prize for Best Student Oral Presentation: Lydia Whittaker (Trinity College Dublin)
Honourable mention: Katie Schofield (University of Durham)
As far I know there are no Oscars or BAFTAS to celebrate (yet)! But its that time of year where we can nominate great colleagues for Awards. We are part of an international community so this need not be urging you to think of nominating someone from the UK. The newly revamped process for IAVCEI Awards can be found here [iavceivolcano.org] and do not forget about EGU and AGU too as well as MinSoc and GeolSoc Awards.
Get your thinking caps on too for this year’s round of VMSG Awards too – more about that soon! – Jenni Barclay (Chair)
Abate Melaku (St. Andrews) writes…
I had the opportunity of attending the AGU 2024 conference, hosted in Washington DC from 8-13 December 2024. The conference provided me with my first valuable experience in presenting my PhD work and engaging with experts in the field of volcanism and magmatism at a major international conference.
As a presenter, I delivered a poster titled “Mantle plume linked to high volatile emissions in the Central Ethiopian Rift” which focused on the magnitude and origin of gas emissions from the Tulu Moye volcanic complex in Ethiopia. The presentation was well received and had the opportunity to engage in fruitful discussions with fellow researchers and the wider scientific community. I have got insightful comments and feedback on my work which helped me to incorporate additional perspectives. I also attended valuable sessions and panel discussions of the conference which gave me additional insights in my work.
Beyond the academic engagement, the conference provided me with vital networking opportunities and new collaborations for my future research. I have collaborated and become a member of the Ethiopian Geophysical Union International (ETGUI) and participated in the members’ annual meeting alongside the AGU conference. The knowledge and connections gained will contribute significantly to my future profession and research.
Overall, attending the AGU 2024 conference was an invaluable experience that significantly enhanced my presentation skills, expanded my professional network, and added additional input to my academic development. I am grateful for the financial support I have received from VMSG student bursary that facilitated my participation in this prestigious event.
Thank you for your support.
Jack Bronziet (Manchester) writes…
Sponsored by the VMSG Student travel bursary, I was able to attend the joint VMSG-MDSG conference hosted by Trinity College Dublin from 6th-8th January 2025. The collaborative nature of a joint conference provided a unique environment to bring together fields that typically have little communication, despite the importance of magmatic and volcanic controls on the formation of many ore systems. The joint talks were particularly good at showing how techniques typically used by igneous petrologists and geochemists can be particularly useful in better constraining the controls on magmatic ore systems.
Now in the second year of my PhD, I presented a poster titled ‘Magmatism and Mineralisation along the Great Glen Fault Northwest Highlands, Scotland’, in which I presented my progress so far in constraining emplacement conditions of mineralised appinite intrusions in the Grampian Terrain. Future work will entail probing geochemical and emplacement heterogeneities of similar intrusions in the barren Northern Highland terrain, compared to the prospective Grampian terrain. It was very useful to get insights and feedback on my project, particularly from people familiar with Scottish Caledonian igneous geology. I also found it useful speaking to industry representatives about apply geochemical fertility indicators typically used in porphyry copper districts to my project.
Perhaps the highlight of the conference to me was meeting lots of new people in a wonderful city. From the pre-conference field trip to Caledonian magmas, to all the evening socials, it was a pleasure connecting with a variety of different researchers, from volcanologists through to ore geologists. Everyone was very constructive, welcoming and willing to listen, qualities which are crucial for an interdisciplinary conference to succeed. This conference certainly succeeded.
This joint VMSG-MDSG conference provided an invaluable opportunity for me to not only catch up with other researchers again but also speak to many new researchers across a range of disciplines. Once again, I would like to thank VMSG’s generous sponsorship, enabling this to happen.
The closing date for the next round of bursaries is 15 March 2025 so here is a gentle reminder to get your nominations and applications in!
We welcome applications for student bursaries, which offer funding to postgraduate researchers of up to £500 to support activities that would otherwise not be possible. Remember, PhD students in their first year are now eligible to apply but you still must have presented at a VMSG conference prior to the application deadline.
Please see the bursaries website for further details and to apply.
Please get in touch if you have any questions about the bursaries or the bursary process. – Katy Chamberlain (Awards & Bursaries)
We’re please to welcome three new members to the VMSG Committee this year.
Tash is a PhD student at Keele University. Her research uses petrological and geochemical techniques to understand the transition after caldera-forming eruptions to renewed caldera cycles by characterising eruptive activity, eruption style, magma composition and magma storage conditions and processes.
Katy is a volcanologist at the University of Liverpool. Her research looks at integrating field- and mineral-scale observations of igneous processes to understand magmatic plumbing systems and volcanic timescales.
Mike is an igneous petrologist at trinity College Dublin, whose research is focussed on using novel petrological/geochemical techniques to understand the architecture/dynamics of magma systems.
We are looking for an ECR Rep to join the committee and to represent VMSG’s early-career research community. This is a 3-year term, and in the role you would participate in committee meetings and VMSG activities through the year, including at the annual winter meeting. If you’re interested in this position, please do get in touch with Seb Watt on s.watt@bham.ac.uk with any questions, and see further details about applying for the role on the VMSG email list. – Seb Watt (Secretary)
For those not in Dublin, we were excited to announce that the next VMSG will be held in Southampton in early January. Keep your eyes open for more details later in the year.
EGU 2025, Vienna, 27 April–2 May 2025
IAVCEI 2025, Geneva, 29 June–4 July 2025, website
The International Symposium on Experimental Mineralogy, Petrology and Geochemistry (EMPG), Orléans, 16 June–19 June 2025, website
Goldschmidt 2025, Prague, 6–11 July 2025, website
Do you have any job opportunities, PhD viva celebrations, or funding announcements that you would like to advertise? If so, please get in touch with David Neave.
Don’t forget to keep in touch with us and other volcanologists around the world. There are several ways you can do this: through the VMSG PhD and ECR directory (here), the Arizona State University mailing list (here), and the VMSG mailing list (here).
