International Women’s Day – Accelerating Action with Dr Yuhan Xie

Dr Yuhan Xie plays with single atoms and nanoparticles to find cleaner, greener and more sustainable ways to make industrial chemicals and fight climate change.

As a Research Fellow with our Centre, one of the ways Yuhan achieves this is to use carbon dioxide from the atmosphere instead of fossil fuels to make chemicals such as ethylene, an important industrial chemical used in plastics, packaging, textiles, PVC pipes, insulation, and tyres.

Physics and space sparked Yuhan’s interest in science. “But it was chemistry that ultimately captured my heart,” she says, “I think exploring molecules and materials is similar to exploring unknown mini planets and worlds, right?”

For Yuhan, the thrill of research lies in the “everyday ups and downs” that keep her engaged and motivated. She does, however, recognise the unique challenges women face in academia, particularly when it comes to work-life balance and career progression.

“It can be challenging for women in academia to balance working hard to build a successful career and, for example, taking breaks to have or care for a family. There’s also stress from job instability especially as an early career researcher,” says Yuhan.

Yuhan believes that fostering a more balanced work environment for women requires societal change.

“To pave the way toward gender equality in academia, we need to encourage greater female participation in STEM and create more opportunities for women in research,” say Yuhan.

“By attracting more young girls to STEM fields and opening more STEM positions specifically for women, we can help accelerate gender equality in research and foster a more inclusive work-life balance,” she says.