“For me LGBTQ+ STEM Berlin represents a great opportunity to inspire a new generation of LGBTQ+ scientists and to help them build up supportive network in the STEM field, be it in academia or in the industry. I want us to be the LGBTQ+ mentors that we lacked in our early career years.’”

Originally from Colombia, Juan Castillo studied chemistry at the Free University of Berlin, did his PhD in Radiochemistry and further specialized in this field throughout his career. After his PhD, Juan Castillo has worked as a radiochemist in the medical imaging field at the Charité University Hospital, the TU Eindhoven and the University Hospital of Cologne. His love of Berlin (and of his husband) led him to come back to the city in 2020. Today, Juan Castillo works in Berlin in the pharmaceutical industry, focusing on the clinical development phase of radiopharmaceuticals for nuclear medicine applications, and is an active member of LGBTQ+ Stem Berlin.

“I see our group as an opportunity to add to Berlin’s wide range of communities by building our very own and giving LGBTQ+ STEM people a space to connect with each other.”

Torn between her love for physics and biology, Sarah Mäusle chose to study Molecular Life Science in Lübeck, Germany. During her Master’s studies, she discovered her affinity for biophysics. In 2017 she began working on her PhD at the Physics Department of the Freie Unviersität Berlin. Her research there is focused on using time-resolved single-frequency infrared spectroscopy to gain insights into the molecular mechanism of the water-splitting reaction in Photosystem II, which creates the oxygen we breathe. Sarah is passionate about feminism, including queer rights, and in 2019 she co-founded LGBTQ STEM Berlin with the hopes of increasing queer visibility in STEM and connecting queer people from STEM fields in Berlin.
Pronouns: She/Her.

“LGBTQ+ Visibility and Representation matters! I am happy that we have an opportunity to make a change within the STEM community.”

Jovan Dragelj is originally from Belgrade, Serbia. Following bis BSc and MSc studies, he worked as a chemistry teacher and did research at the University of Belgrade. In 2019, he obtained a PhD in computational chemistry at Freie Universitaet Berlin (FU Berlin). He now works on drug discovery as a senior scientist in biotech/pharma industry. He is also a guest lecturer at Berliner Hochschule für Technik (BHT). In 2019, he co-founded the LGBTQ STEM Berlin with the intention to increase visibility and inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
Pronouns: He/Him.

Queer in Chem: Q&A with Dr Jovan Dragelj

“Visibility of LGBTQ+ people can enrich STEM as a whole. Therefore I’m dedicated to help increasing the visibility of LGBTQ+ people working in STEM in the Berlin area.”

Klaus is a physicist working as senior scientist at a research centre in Berlin. In his work, he does optical simulations of solar cells in order to improve their performance. He is motivated to help solving the World´s big problems through science – such as fighting the climate crisis through decarbonizing the energy sector. Driven by the same motivation he also participates in the core team of LGBTQ+ STEM Berlin, where he aims to increase the visibility of LGBTQ+ people in academia.
Pronouns: He/His.

“I’m part of this group to create community and increase visibility for LGBTQ+ people in STEM.”

Charly Brinkmann completed her undergraduate degree in molecular biology at the University of St Andrews and master’s in food security at the University of Glasgow. After completing studies, her she moved back to her home country to start a PhD. Charly works at the Leibniz institute for vegetable and ornamental crops (IGZ) in Großbeeren, studying plant pathogen interactions. She joined the core team in 2020.
Pronouns: She/Her

“Physics PhD student who really feels at home in the LGBTIAQ+ community and loves to find ways to bring these worlds closer together.”

My name is Daan (he/his), a PhD student in theoretical physics at the University of Leipzig and of the homosexual variety. In my work I study the the influence of quantum fields on the formation of black holes, and outside of that I love to be involved in the LGBTIAQ+ community (admittedly vague as that term may sometimes be). These are both very important aspects of my life, and these are also sides I’d rather not keep fully separated. Unfortunately, by mechanisms too complicated to delve in here, these worlds sometimes seem to live in different universes. I believe that this does not and should not be the case, and this is my motivation to join this lovely group of people that being these worlds together.
Pronouns: He/His

„It’s time for us queer scientists to change the face of research and promote LGBTQ+ visibility and representation in STEM”.

Originally from Tel-Aviv, currently living in Berlin, and soon moving to the San Fransisco Bay Area, Aviv is an incoming bioengineering PhD student at Stanford University. Before turning to bioengineering, Aviv studied biophysics and worked as a research assistant at the Humboldt University of Berlin. Aviv also has previous experience as a queer youth counselor, a mentor for high-school students with migratory backgrounds, and a co-founder of a community organization. As part of our LGBTQ+ STEM Berlin core team, Aviv helps with the development of queer STEM initiatives and the organization of our events. Once in the US, he will serve as our coordinator for collaborations with partner queer STEM organizations, universities, and research institutes.
Pronouns: He/Him.

“I’m excited to have the chance to be part of an organization dedicated to drive change and increase visibility of LGBTQ+ individuals in STEM fields.”

Melinda Jacobs is a gamification expert, tech entrepreneur and N7 paragon. She’s a geeky nerd who found a way to combine her love of games and her fascination with people’s behavior into her full time job. She has a research Master Degree from Utrecht University in Media Studies and her research focuses on how games and interactive (digital) experiences can educate and change behavior in people. She’s currently founder of Perkio and on a mission to improve wellbeing by helping organizations build and talk about culture. She routinely gives talks around the world on playful design, behavioral science, and technology ethics. She co-founded LGBTQ STEM Berlin with the hope of creating a safe space for people to connect, discuss, and explore ways to boost visibility of LGBTQIA+ people in STEM.
Pronouns: She/Her.