Recognizing Plant Physiology authors: Maja Arsic

Maja Arsic, first author of Bio-imaging techniques reveal foliar phosphate uptake pathways and leaf phosphorus status

Current Position: PhD student (University of Copenhagen and the University of South Australia)

Education: Bachelor of Science (Advanced with Class I Honours), Griffith University Australia

Non-scientific interests: hiking, reading, blogging, and illustration

Brief-Bio: As I have always been fascinated by the natural world and understanding our place in it, I studied a broad BSc majoring in environmental science, applied chemistry and climate change adaptation. As a result, I have been involved in many exciting research projects, from conducting plant functional diversity surveys in the beautiful Australian Alps to completing my honours in environmental chemistry by tracing aquatic heavy metal pollutants from mining waste in coastal swamps. Currently, as a 2017 John Monash Scholar, I have been lucky enough to enjoy working and travelling between two countries during my PhD in Plant Science. I am passionate about improving agricultural sustainability and am keen to work on strengthening the relationship between science and policy, due to my previous experience working for the Australian Department of Agriculture & Water Resources. Research-wise, I am especially interested in applying cutting edge techniques such as LA-ICP-MS and synchrotron radiation to tricky problems at the nexus of agriculture and the environment (such as “peak phosphorus”), as well as answering integral questions in plant physiology. In my spare time, I am an advocate for diversity in STEAM (STEM and the arts) by running an international online magazine to promote and support these exciting projects.