Fourth year Chemistry student at University of York, currently undertaking the industrial placement at Bioniqs Limited. I am working on the development of methods for chemical recycling of plastic.

I am a Politics, Philosophy and Economics graduate who is greatly interested in peace-building and its direct impact on immigration policy. I have always had a strong strong passion and motivation to make a positive social impact, for my Laidlaw Research Project I was researching alternative and cost-effective education system that could be embedded in the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) to guarantee refugees’ educational rights. This required me to conduct extensive research, economic modelling and to think outside the traditional norms of education to find a solution. This is a project I am still working to develop further- if you have any interest in this, reach out and let's have a virtual coffee. I am currently spending my gap year working for Business Plan for Peace to encourage disinvestment in the industry of war, and instead pushing for private funding in initiatives that make peace profitable for the investors. If you are a part of a private company that would like who would like to expand their philanthropic commitment while being an active part of making peace-building a profitable industry- please do reach out!

Hello, my name is Joe and I'm an undergraduate scholar researching the use of bismuth vanadate catalysts in driving sustainable reactions. This research placement has been invaluable to my personal development in addition to insight into what postgraduate study in a laboratory looks like. Picking up scientific techniques that aren't taught at the undergraduate level gives me an advantage when pursuing a future career, for example during an interview. In terms of personal interests, I have a passion for music. I am Grade 6 for both Bassoon and Drums, in addition to Grade 5 Piano. I am a member of the University of York Concert Band (UYCB), where I was Tour Manager for 2018/19 where I, along with 27 other musicians, toured Holland, Belgium, and Germany for 6 days. I am currently UYCB Secretary for 2019/20 and am responsible for any auditions that take place for conductors/committee members. I am also enthusiastic about the sport. I have been playing hockey for a number of years, including for my college team at university. I also occasionally play floorball for the university and go running regularly to keep my fitness levels up.

My Laidlaw project focused on detecting components of underarm body odour in clothing through GCMS, but I have a broad range of interests in biology. I have recently been awarded a Sainsbury undergraduate studentship in plant science, which will support an 8 week research project at the John Innes Centre. During this project, I will investigate regulatory interactions between novel P-type cyclins and bHLH transcription factors required for iron stress responses in plants. My other interests include developmental biology and transcriptomics. I'm always happy to discuss ideas and answer questions!

Passionate biologist venturing into the wonderful world of applied science. LaidLaw Project: Developing a novel natural technology for combating algal growth in fish tanks. Research includes: 1. Characterised the microbial community in a fish tank experiencing a severe algae bloom. 2. Used microcosm experiments to test algal interactions with other microorganisms. 3. Developing a way to apply the promising results from my previous work to the aquarium ecosystem.

Despite being an Economics student - and I do like Economics - my research project looked into right-wing market resistance, particularly boycotts. Having conducted an exploratory study of the phenomena in my first research period, I later worked on developing a scale that could be used to measure consumers' propensity to boycott. Thanks to the Laidlaw Scholarship I learnt that I love doing research so much that I would like it to become a basis of my career.

I am a postgraduate philosophy student at the Berlin School of Mind and Brain and my research brings together psychology, philosophy and politics. I aim for my work to be as interdisciplinary as possible, encompassing theoretical explorations as well as empirical research. In my first period of Laidlaw research, I reviewed the psychological literature on cognitive biases and developped a model for understanding the internal and environmental factors which lead to polarization. In my second research period, I applied this knowledge directly to politics, focusing on the role of flawed individuals in a democracy. With the rise of populism and the current breakdown of democratic processes globally, it is not a stretch to say that many modern democracies are failing. How much does this have to do with the irrational tendencies of individuals and how much is down to failures in the democratic institutions themselves? My research applies the findings of cognitive bias research to the political sphere and uses it as a jumping-off point to explore the ways that democracy must be adapted to combat new challenges posed by technology and our evolving understanding of human nature.

I am a human rights defender focusing on children's rights. I am the vice chair and empowerment and involvement officer of the Amnesty UK Children's Human Rights Network. The network is a dynamic, and change-making group of activists who campaign with children to make their rights real. My research this summer has focused on understanding how certain linguistic structures are used by organisations, movements, and individual activists to take action on human rights issues.

I am studying a potential new species of testate amoeba from Cors Fochno, a sphagnum peat bog in North Wales.

Since 2015, I have been passionate about ending poverty in the UK. I began my journey as a campaigner against poverty in my local area with Poverty Ends Now, a young person lead group ran by Children North East. Since then, I have represented the UK in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and other positions of influence with poverty as my main focus point. My Laidlaw Scholarship research project is all about the relationship between language, meaning and poverty. By understanding and changing unhelpful public discourse about poverty, we can start to shift power.

History student working on women's history in the Early Modern period. My Laidlaw Research focused on French Revolutionary Women and their responses to misogyny, using archival documents to evidence their resistance. My masters thesis will consider the agency of sex workers in European cities at the end of the 16th century, and will be conducted at the University of Oxford.

It is only fitting that a leading university offers a prestigious course in leadership. The Laidlaw Undergraduate Research and Leadership Scholarship at the University of York equips self-motivated and ambitious undergraduate students with the knowledge, skills and experience to become leaders in their chosen fields.