Meet Antoine de Clippele
“It is all very «human» in Congo, and I love the interactions I establish with people. I would like to keep working between two cultures and have a dynamic job in the future as well.”
Let’s meet Antoine de Clippele, scientific assistant in the SAE group. Antoine is from Belgium, and he graduated in Environmental Sciences at the Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium). After working in Mozambique for about two years and going back to academia for a while, he started supporting the TropSEDs project in the group and he is now also involved in fundamental research on methane and carbon dioxide emissions in Africa.
What were your main tasks when you started working in the SAE group?
“As coordinator of the TropSEDs project, I took care of setting up the field expeditions. Three years ago, with only two phone numbers in my hands, I started looking for a ship to accommodate around 30 people and a field lab to cross the Kasai River basin. I recruited the ship’s crew and collected all essentials and the necessary gears for every trip. I also helped collect samples and solve problems we encountered along the way.”
Do you like the dynamic nature of your work?
“I love it! Not only I have the chance to see many different landscapes, but also to do hands-on work in the field and do research. Indeed, I recently started to focus on gas emissions in the forested floodplains of Mbandaka (Africa), which are fascinating environments at the interface between land and water.”
What has impressed you in your travels about these environments and people?
“During the dry season, it was striking to see a tree with 10-meter-high aerial roots growing above ground in the floodplain. I am still impressed every time I look at a picture showing myself standing in front of those roots. Regarding people, I have realized how important human connections are in Congo and how resilient and adaptive people can be there. They will always find the best possible solution to any problem using what is available to them.”
Are you happy to work in the SAE group?
“Yes. I like to work on different topics, and I appreciate the fact that I can be independent in the way I decide to approach tasks and solve problems. Moreover, I like to attend our weekly team meeting where I can listen to group members presenting their research progress. It is like having a snapshot about what everyone is working on, which is usually very diverse.”
If you are curious to know more about Antoine’s research and the projects he is supporting, visit the TropSEDs and RUNRES project websites.
You can contact him via e-mail for more questions:
