Elian van Schalkwijk

I am currently doing my physics Bachelor at EPFL.

Hey! My name is Eva, and I’m a third-year Bachelor’s student in Life Sciences. I’m doing my Bachelor’s in Switzerland, but I’m originally from France. This year, I’m also on exchange in the Netherlands. I’m passionate about neuroscience and cancer research, and I would love to pursue a career that has a meaningful impact and helps people. In my free time, I have a lot of hobbies, as I’m always up for trying something new. I particularly love playing the piano, running, and watercolor painting.

Hi everyone, I'm an undergraduate Materials Science student at EPFL. Alongside engineering, I've picked up some economics and law, mostly because I wanted to understand not just how something works technically, but what it takes for it to actually get used. As a Laidlaw Scholar, I'm building a simulation model of the global carbon-fibre value chain, looking at realistic, costed paths to net zero by 2050. It touches materials, energy and finance at once, which is the kind of problem I like working on. I try to take leadership seriously, mostly as following through on what you're responsible for. I co-led a water management project in Nyon that got funding from the Rotary Club and was implemented with local authorities, worked on a documentary about migration policy, debated in Model United Nations, and tutor students. I also spent nine months travelling, which made me more comfortable in unfamiliar situations. Outside the lab, I'm usually in the mountains or with a camera. Always glad to talk about anything. Cheers!

Mathematics researcher at EPFL, Laidlaw Scholar, and systems optimizer. I specialize in formalizing mathematics in Lean 4 (currently researching with Fields Medalist Prof. Maryna Viazovska) and building high-performance software. I don't just study systems; I look for their underlying logic to optimize them. My recent work ranges from deploying production software that uses Max-Plus algebra to reduce event logistics complexity to , to building decentralized parametric insurance on the blockchain and coding real-time cognitive analysis AI pipelines. With a background in local politics (former Town Councilor) and a certification in behavioral psychology (PCM), I am fascinated by the intersection of human behavior and pure logic. When I'm not writing proofs or coding, you can find me rowing or trying to teach Lean 4 to my grandmother.

Originally from France, I moved to Switzerland to complete my Bachelor's in Microtechnology at EPFL.  I am bilingual in French and English. I am driven by robotics and technology research grounded in ethics, ecological sobriety, and real-world social value. I prefer to focus on meaningful engineering rather than tech hype. With passions spanning humanities, arts, and outdoor sports, I bring a well-rounded perspective to collaborative leadership and purpose-driven projects.

I'm a Computer Science student at EPFL with a strong foundation in mathematics, physics, and interdisciplinary thinking. My academic path includes distinctions such as the Laidlaw Leadership and Research Scholarship and hands-on research experience in computational neuroscience, where I explore biologically plausible reinforcement learning. Beyond academics, I have practical experience ranging from electronics diagnostics to web development for social initiatives. I'm passionate about educational outreach—leading workshops for children, tutoring young students, and promoting inclusive learning. I’m also active in sports and the arts as a football player, pianist, and chess enthusiast. With fluency in Italian, French, and English, and a growing command of German, I enjoy connecting across cultures and disciplines to solve meaningful problems.

Hi there! I’m Tommaso (with two Ms!) and I’m a 3rd year bachelor student in Physics at EPFL. Beyond Physics, I have a deep passion about journalism and current events, along with history of arts and its way of crafting societies. I enjoy spending time in nature, especially when it comes to mountain sports like rock climbing or skiing. I've also practiced track and field for many years, and I currently enjoy going for a run along the lake! Happy to chat anytime about any topic!

Life Sciences Engineering, EPFL Bachelor Student

Čau! I come from Latvia,  a small but mighty country on the shores of the Baltic Sea. Before pursuing engineering, I was actively engaged in Green politics and environmental activism. This experience made me realise how disconnected the pillars of science, policy, and society are; hence, I took it upon myself to try and change that. I’ve been studying Environmental engineering and sciences at EPFL, Switzerland, for 2 years and hope to be in this field for many more to come. For my research internship, I am working on detecting and reducing bias in atmospheric pH modelling, and during my LiA project, I wish to work with communities directly affected by climate change. In my free time, I love to do pole dancing, calisthenics, and photography! I also reeeeaaaaly enjoy sleeping bahhaha and intentionally slowing down :)

Hello! I’m a psychology researcher and the founder of HaHaHelps, a comedy-based psychosocial programme designed to support young people in residential care. I am currently completing an MSocSci in Psychology at the University of Cape Town, where my dissertation examines the feasibility of HaHaHelps with adolescents in South African child and youth care centres. My broader interests include youth mental health, psychosocial intervention development, implementation, participatory approaches, and the use of humour and play to support connection, emotional expression, self-efficacy, and coping with uncertainty. HaHaHelps grew out of my Laidlaw Leadership-in-Action project at SOS Children’s Villages in Cape Town, where I designed and facilitated an improv-comedy programme for adolescents. Since then, I have continued developing and delivering the programme with young people in residential care and am now studying how it can be refined, evaluated, and ultimately adapted for use in other communities and settings. Before this, my Laidlaw research at the University of Toronto examined relationships between childhood adversity, aggression, and self-regulation. I’d love to connect with other Laidlaw Scholars and alumni interested in youth mental health, social impact, intervention development, social entrepreneurship, or simply finding creative ways to turn research into something useful in the world.

Hi everyone, I'm Dan-Thi and I am the Laidlaw Program Manager at EPFL. I've been working for more than 10 years in the higher education industry and I love all aspects related to my work, but especially the interactions with the students, helping and seeing them grow personally and professionally. I've lived in fast-paced environments in Asia (Hong Kong, Japan) and I'm now based in Lausanne, Switzerland. I enjoy travelling and always looks for discovering new cultures!  Please get in touch if you want to discuss about anything regarding food, sport and travel, or if you want to have more information about EPFL and studying there! :o)

Hi ;) I'm from Bordeaux, a city I love for its food and its ocean. The Atlantic is right around the corner, and nothing beats swimming straight into the waves! Growing up surrounded by that gastronomic culture, I fell in love with cooking as a child, and more broadly with visual arts (really into cinema right now) and anything that lets me work with my hands. But what really drives me is having an impact. I care deeply about fighting climate change, and I want to help build sustainable engineering and technology that's accessible to everyone and works to reduce inequalities in human development. Feel free to reach out !

Bonjour ! I'm from the most beautiful city in the world (in my opinion!), the City of Light, Paris. I'm currently a first-year Bachelor's student in Physics at EPFL, in Lausanne, Switzerland. I want to help push science forward by working in a cutting-edge scientific field later on: nuclear fusion is one that particularly excites me. I'm doing my research internship in a particle physics laboratory. The experiment I'm working on aims to discover new particles, which would be a major step forward for physics. For my Leadership-in-Action project, I don't have a precise idea yet, but I'd love to contribute to something in environmental protection or education, two causes I care deeply about. Outside my studies, I'm passionate about art and museums, especially literature and opera, as well as sport, particularly climbing and skiing, and I follow politics closely. Feel free to reach out if you'd like to swap book recommendations or chat about physics, art or politics!