SHARING THE EXPERIENCE OF MOBILITY OF A MARIE CURIE RESEARCHER

Maria BOSTENARU DAN

Outline

Biography Family background on mobility

Stations of mobility Germany and Canada Marie Curie in Italy and reintegration

Role models Architecture and research

Conclusions

Biography

Universitatea de Arhitectura si Urbanism „Ion Mincu“

Current work place

Biography

Born 1974, Bucharest, Romania, Romanian citizen

My grandfather, mother‘s side (1902-1973) was ethnic German, I am member of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania

My grandmother, mother‘s side (1909-1987) was born in Kiskunfélegyháza, today Hungary

My grandmother‘s brother and his family emigrated to Canada following the Hungarian revolution from 1956, after spending some time in Pisa, Italy

Revolution square

Bucharest, Romania

The place where Danube Swabians settled about 300 years ago

(house where my grandfather was born, typical vernacular construction)

Foieni, Romania

Town hall

(where an ancestor

worked as enginer)

Kiskunfélegyháza, Hungary

Hungarian community in Montreal

Family

My grandmother went from Hungary to Romania

My grandmother‘s sister studied medicine as one of the first in Szeged, Hungary. She then became a cistercian nun.

My grandfather did a doctorate

Stations of my mobility

Stations of my mobility

Bucharest, Romania Karlsruhe, Germany Pavia, Italy Bucharest, Romania Montreal, Canada

Karlsruhe, Germany

Aerial view of Karlsruhe

Karlsruhe, Germany

1996 TEMPUS scholarship (EU) to study August: research assistant

1997-1999 continuing studies until award of diploma (own funding) 1998 – student participant to building survey in

Myslakowice, Poland (DFG funding) 1998-1999 practice in Kramm-Strigl office,

Darmstadt 1999 -funding for work in sociology of architecture

1998-2002 involvment in student dormitory HaDiKo

The office (designed by Kramm et Strigl) for the practica

Prof. Kramm was also the head of the chair where I was student assistant and did my diploma

Darmstadt, Germany

Building survey

The country of Marie Curie

Myslakowice, Poland

HaDiKo, the student dormitory, where I took voluntary positions

Karlsruhe, Germany

Karlsruhe, Germany

2000-2001 student assistant DFG Project SFB 461 „Strong earthquakes“ (Germany-Romania cooperation)

2000-2003 scholarship in frame of the GK 450 „Natural Disasters“, interrupted with stay in Pavia (2002-2003)

Continued stay till 2005 (own funding) 2005-2006 Monthly travels from Pavia

(retaining room in student dormitory)

Institut für Technologie und Management im Baubetrieb

(former Institute für Maschinenwesen im Baubetrieb)

Work place in Karlsruhe, Germany

Karlsruhe, Germany

Research on the economics of seismic retrofit measures Interdisciplinary Research Training Network Cooperation of the GK/SFB and thus Romania

Member of the editorial board of the „World Housing Encyclopedia“

Member of the advisory board of the Marie Curie Fellows Association (2003)

The doctorate never came to a defense It would have been the first doctorate of a woman at the

Institute of Technology and Management in Construction in 40 years (now nearly 50; none was done since either)

The test site of the institute, shortly before going first to Pavia

Karlsruhe, Germany

Pavia, Italy

Certosa di Pavia

Pavia, Italy

2002-2003 (6 months) Marie Curie early stage training site stay at the ROSE School (European School for Advanced Studies in Reduction of Seismic Risk – name changed today)

2005-2007 (2 years) Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship (experienced researcher) at the same institution (2004 competition) (report accepted) It was possible to apply without a doctorate, so

the research career was continued

ROSE School

c/o EUCENTRE

Work place in Pavia, Italy

Pavia, Italy

Research on historic reinforced concrete buildings in seismic areas: Romania, Italy, Greece, Slovenia, Portugal

High specialisation in earthquakes The research centre in Italy belongs to

one of the best in the world. Article in ScienceCareers

The field is male dominated, one of the two women involved in the teaching body had a TMR (FP5 mobility)

Historic reinforced concrete buildings

Subject of the research

Germany - Italy

The former institution in Germany and the host institution in Italy did not know of each other before embarking the fellowship, but now have common projects (Global Earthquake Model), masters, and also another researcher moved from Karlsruhe to Pavia to do a masters

The current contact of the fellow with the former host institution is informal

There is contact with another researcher from Italy for doing together a book

Italy

Also the World Housing Encyclopedia, to which I did voluntary work since 2001 when I was in Germany (writing reports on Germany, Switzerland and Romania) is now closely cooperating with the host institution in Pavia. Inclusion in the project is, however, pending since the begin of the year …

Bucharest, Romania

Bucharest, Romania

Bucharest, Romania

1980-1992 attending school and lyceum 1992-1997 attending the „Ion Mincu“

University of Architecture and Urbanism Ranked #2 at the admission exam „merit“ scholarship in 1996-1997 1994 Cross School Project with Regensburg,

Germany Study takes 6 years, colleagues graduated

in 1998 TEMPUS scholarship in Karlsruhe 1996

Bucharest, Romania

Returned in 2007 2007-2010 Marie Curie Reintegration Grant at

Foundation ERGOROM ´99 (report accepted) 2007-2010 collaborator (voluntary) at a project

of the University of Bucharest on seismic vulnerability

2007-2008 collaborator, since 2008 employed permanentely at the „Ion Mincu“ University of Architecture and Urbanism, Restoration chair

Representant for Romania in the COST action TU0801, on 3D city models, since 2009

Bucharest, Romania

2008 started a doctorate on the topic of historic reinforced concrete constructions in Romania and Italy (envisaged to be finished 2012)

2009-2010 co-teaching the course of „Risks“, based on the multiyear experience in the field, with the doctorate supervisor

The reintegration grant gave the possibility of returning to the initial field of architecture

2011 member of the administrative board of the Marie Curie Fellows Association

Bucharest, Romania

Employment in Romania is as „researcher“, which is a rare position, and not so esteemed as teaching positions

For employment, went to the university where she started studying

There are hopes that research experience will be more appreciated with the new university law of Dr. Daniel Funeriu, the Science Minister, a former Marie Curie Fellow (FP6 Excellence Grant in Germany)

If I would have had a doctorate, with my publication record I would have been one of the few eligible for principal investigator of projects after the new law

Women are promoted in Romania

Current work place (university)

Centrul de Studii Arhitecturale si Urbane

Current work place (research centre)

Romania - Italy

Contacts between Romania and Italy are multiple, but don‘t have to do with my stay there

Plans to do a Short Term Scientific Mission at Politecnico di Milano

Montreal, Canada

EXPO 1967

Montreal, Canada

Montreal, Canada

Support grant of the Canadian Centre for Architecture June-July 2010 Research on archive photography of disasters Research on the Rudolph Fränkel archive Study trips on Dan Hanganu architecture

A book project on archive photography of disasters is approved at Springer and 3 articles published or accepted

A further book on Fränkel should be done in Romania

Canadian Centre for Architecture

Support Grant site

Azores, 10 years after the 1998 earthquake

Own photo of ruins after disasters

„built“ ruin

CCA garden

Covering with vegetation as in the Azores case

CCA garden

Hungary

Hungary

Applied in 2011 for second citizenship, according to the new law

Role models

Role models

When in Karlsruhe, did a research work for project management on leadership figures in fairy tales, with accent on women

There were a couple of architects and researchers following the same path (countrywise)

Germany - Romania

Germany < > Romania

Art historian Alexandru Tzigara-Samurcas went for research from Romania to Germany Project in Romania on his archive

http://www.uauim.ro/en/chairs/history_theory_and_heritage_conservation/archives/tzigara-samurcas/

Rudolf Fränkel came to practice architecture from Germany to Romania Current project on his architecture in

Bucharest, following archive research in Canada

View from the vernisage of the exhibition

Tzigara Samurcas archive

Rudolph Fränkel archive at the CCA

Rudolf Fränkel, German architect who emigrated to Romania, UK, USA

Adriatica building

Italy-Romania

Italy < > Romania

Virginia Haret went to learn to practice and do research to Rome in the early 20th century

Later on the Romanian School in Rome was established

Nicolae Cucu, Nicolae Lupu, Richard Bordenache completed research stages there before going into practice in Romania

Grigore Ionescu went to a research career in Romania afterwards

Italy < > Romania

József Vágo, architect from Oradea emigrated, following the Hungarian Revoulution after the First World War, to France after spending in between about 6 years in Rome

A Romanian woman who did research in Italy at the begin of the century

Work of Virginia Haret, the first woman architect

József Vágo in Budapest and Oradea

Canada - Romania

Romania > Canada

Already mentioned research on the Rudolph Fränkel archive, at the CCA

Romania-born architect of Greek origin Iannis Xenakis emigrated to France. His main work were „polytopes“, one of them being in the French pavilion at the Expo 1967. During the stay at the CCA there was an exhibition on Xenakis

Romania educated architect Dan Hanganu is a well known practicing architect and professor in Montreal. He is regular guest at various events in Romania

Rudolph Fränkel archive at the CCA

Rudolf Fränkel, German architect who emigrated to Romania, UK, USA

Adriatica building

Iannis Xenakis, ethic Greek architect from Romania, who emmigrated to France

French pavillion, host for the „polytope“ of Xenakis

Dan Hanganu architecture in Montreal

Conclusions (1)

I went only to countries where a family link existed. Learning the language in a mobility endeavour is the

easiest thing. Difficult is to adapt to the cultural differences. Mobility, however, helps learning languages

In Germany it was easier to adapt to the culture because some habits I already had from the education of my grandparents (punctuality, cooking habits etc)

In Montreal I had relatives In Italy in 2002-2003 it was easy to make friends,

because I was integrated with other masters and doctoral researchers who were there on limited time. As visiting experienced researcher it wasn‘t possible

Conclusions (2)

In my experience integrating in the student dormitory went better than integrating among the work colleagues, because of the voluntary component of working in a student association

Voluntary work brings more contacts which might help you in the future career than conference contacts

There should be more accent on involvment in (professional) associations (ex. scientific committees) than in conference attendance, also in recognition

Marie Curie individual fellowships, and other individual national fellowships from abroad should be recognised as eligible to join a COST action in order to be included in a network

Conclusions (3)

Marie Curie Fellowship have the far best funding for conference attendance, but it is a double issue here: The short duration of the fellowship does not allow

for doing both research and the lengthy process of publishing in a journal or a book chapter

It may lead to a tendency to publish in conference proceedings I became aware of only later. I finished books started during a funding at the time of the next funding, but the journal papers were published when there was no funding left …

There should be more accent in MC fellowships in having peer reviewed journal publications in international databases, ISI proceedings and so on

Conclusions (4)

The expectations in Germany were that I return to Romania and help improving the level in the country, but there was no support. The cooperation programme with Romania has been no starting point.

After the Marie Curie Fellowship in Italy there was a reintegration grant. The reintegration grant stimulates return as you have something to start from. In my case it was a return to the initial field of architecture, and is now focusing on personalities (also the role models) However, perspectives for advancement in the job are given by the multiyear experience in natural disasters (including new enrolment to doctorate)

There are problems in implementation of Marie Curie fellowships because the fellow is at the good will of the host institution, who receives the money and applies the contract the way it is easiest for the institution, not best for the fellow.

Conclusions (5)

Marie Curie Fellowships are not so known as national funding programmes. As Marie Curie Fellow one is treated as „visiting researcher“, what does not happen with national, not mobility directed, programmes (even if temporary)

There are many kinds of Marie Curie Fellowships and the host institutions tend not to distinguish between them.

The host for the Marie Curie fellowship was in a highly specialised field, and concentration to a single project did not help multidisciplinarity and openness to different subjects to be developed in future projects, as it was in case of working simultaneously on more projects, if the legislation would have allowed

Conclusions (6)

In case of the reintegration grant, which is a foundation, little knowledge in Romania about what a Marie Curie fellowship is leads to the missunderstanding that the foundation finances it, and not the EC The Marie Curie certificates from side of the EC

for individual fellowships should be reintroduced

The peer review experience should be appreciated and the fellows encouraged to become reviewers for FP7 projects to keep contact with the EC

Thank you!