Gino González is a volcanologist from Costa Rica, a country marked by intense volcanic and seismic activity. He explains that pursuing a career in volcanology can be especially challenging when coming from a region where no dedicated volcanology school exists – a reality that still affects many aspiring geoscientists around the world.
Gino’s opinion on ECS Challenges
According to Gino, this situation often makes international mobility necessary in order to pursue specialized training and research opportunities. Beyond the usual challenges faced by immigrants — adapting to a new language, culture, food, and social environment — he highlights that one of the most difficult aspects to manage is migratory status. Based on his experiences in countries such as Italy and Japan, he notes that strict immigration systems can turn the yearly renewal of student permits into a stressful and exhausting process. These difficulties, he explains, often become even more complex during the transition to postdoctoral positions and permanent academic jobs, where bureaucracy itself can become a major obstacle independent of scientific competitiveness.
Reflecting on the broader experience of international geoscientists, Gino emphasizes that geoscience is inherently global and cannot be confined by national boundaries. In his view, becoming a geoscientist involves working across regional and worldwide scales, yet institutional systems often remain rigid and poorly adapted to the realities of scientific mobility. He believes that scientific organizations and international associations could play a much stronger role in supporting researchers facing these bureaucratic and migratory challenges.
Gino also points out that improving institutional support for international early-career scientists would not only benefit future students and researchers but could also strengthen the participation of scientific organizations in broader international science policy discussions.