17 year-old Severin Kaemmerer swapped the green hills of Bavaria for the Brisbane city skyline after coming second in ‘Jugend Forscht’ — Germany’s biggest youth science competition.
Severin, one of 11,000 entrants in the competition, impressed the German judges with his research into copper fluoride and subsequent discovery of what he believes is a ‘novel’ or new compound.
As his prize he spent four weeks at the UQ School of Chemistry & Molecular Biosciences (SCMB) working supervised by Dr Ulrike Kappler, researching metallo-enzyme complexes.
He was fascinated by the University's well-equipped laboratories and said the scholarship not only enhanced his knowledge of biochemistry, it also allowed him to develop as a person.
"The journey to and the stay in Australia required a high degree of self-responsibility and autonomy which added positively to my personal development," he said.
"I improved my English vocabulary and speech fluency day by day as well.
"Also of significance was the great number of international students I met and talked to.
"I was able to learn a lot about different cultures and mentalities."
Severin enjoyed the Brisbane region's many attractions.
"The unique bridges which traverse the Brisbane river impressed me especially when I used the Citycat, which I often did," he said.
"Highlights were my weekend trips to the Gold Coast, to the Sunshine Coast, to the Australia Zoo, to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and the funpark Dream World.
"The Brisbane River Fire was an awesome experience, which wowed me."
Since returning to Germany, Severin has met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel as a guest of the German Government.
The invitation was issued to him because of his high achievement in the Jugend Forscht competition.
