On 9 December, the Maastricht Young Academy had the pleasure of hosting Prof. dr. Martin Paul, our former President and the current Rector/CEO of Ruhr-Universität Bochum, to our Growing Up in Science Series at the Tapijn Brasserie. While the organization of the event proved to be rather chaotic (e.g. the venue was double-booked and the supposed moderator left for Japan prior to actually moderating the event), Martin Paul was an absolute delight. He shared the ups and downs of his tenured career to a group of engaged audience members with his unique warmth and charm. From the events during his childhood that made him into the academic/leader that he is today, to his time in the United States (where he met his wife), Martin was incredibly generous in revealing the various struggles that he faced.
With an abundance of humility and a handful of vulnerablity, he admitted that he is a workaholic who is/was addicted to work and while he has achieved a lot, there were serious sacrifices that had to be made in order to make that possible. He described his early career as a “rat race” (especially during his fellowship at Harvard) and even with his array of successes, he still noted that academia can feel like a “golden cage”.
To immune ourselves from falling into similar traps, Martin advised the following: “Don’t let the system take you over. Don’t let the system run you.” He continued that, in the end, “you have to listen to your inner voice and make a choice.” What struck me the most was when he stated that while doing so “is not without its risks, life is more imporant than science.”
Aside from the many invaluable advice that he offered, what became abundantly clear from his talk was that although he has left his position in Maastricht, his love and affection for our community has not waned one bit. At one point, he even noted that “Maastricht is a paradise!”. However, he also offered another prudent advice, which was that “if everything you think you can do has been done, you have to look for new challenges” and he expressed that he has done all that he can (and probably even more) for Maastricht. He was also quick to give praise to the current leadership of the university and reassured us that he has left the university in very good hands.
In Bochum, he is now focused on bringing some of the positive Maastricht vibe to an otherwise rigid and hierarchical German academic culture. We wish Martin all the luck with his new challenges and thank him from the bottom of our hearts for sharing his precious time and insights with us. Once again, I am so very sorry Martin for my poor event planning and ditching my moderating duties last minute. A very special thank you also to Aurore Lyon for wonderfully filling in the moderating role and Lia Hruby for her hard work behind the scenes. Maybe Maastricht is indeed a “paradise” after all, occupied by many kind and caring souls.