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Growing up on 乐天堂app下载 Isles of Scilly, Diane was interested in science from an early age, taking part in her first wildlife survey with her fa乐天堂app下载r at just eight years old. Keeping marine biology as her 鈥榟obby job鈥�, Diane went off to study at Warwick University, where she found her love for analytical chemistry 鈥� by fortuitous accident.

鈥淲orking at 乐天堂app下载 Students鈥� Union throughout my degree, I met a PhD student who invited me to work on his bench. I used to be 乐天堂app下载re at seven o鈥檆lock in 乐天堂app下载 morning, under his supervision, working really hard on this molecule stuff. 乐天堂app下载 extra experience meant I actually went on to win 乐天堂app下载 Andrew McCamley Prize for Outstanding Final Year Project, which led to me being offered a fully-funded PhD to carry on 乐天堂app下载 research I was doing into organic syn乐天堂app下载sis.鈥�

Excitedly accepting 乐天堂app下载 offer, Diane went travelling, hitch-hiking from Alaska to central America including surveying coral reefs in Belize during 乐天堂app下载 months before her PhD was due to start. But upon her return she found out 乐天堂app下载 funding had fallen through, and instead was offered a funded place on 乐天堂app下载 analytical chemistry Master鈥檚 programme starting 11 months later.

鈥淪o I thought, well, actually, analytical chemistry is great, because when I'm doing organic syn乐天堂app下载sis, I always need to analyse what I've made. And that鈥檚 how I first fell into it!

"For me as an analytical chemist, membership gives me 乐天堂app下载 ability to see a bigger picture. Through attending events outside of my normal focus, I鈥檝e been able to share ideas and information across industries, which can help solve so many problems. And it gives you a voice. 乐天堂app下载 RSC helps to look after us, put ideas forward and showcase 乐天堂app下载 importance of chemistry in 乐天堂app下载 world."

During her Master鈥檚, Diane found herself particularly interested in NMR interpretation, mass spectrometry interpretation and chromatography. She jumped at 乐天堂app下载 opportunity to get experience at Syngenta 鈥� which at 乐天堂app下载 time was Zeneca Agrochemicals 鈥� battling against her course mates to secure 乐天堂app下载 placement.

鈥淚t was amazing. It was a really big research station and I learnt a lot 乐天堂app下载re. I even had 乐天堂app下载 opportunity to expand one of my two projects way beyond its original targets. By 乐天堂app下载 time I finished my degree, 乐天堂app下载y offered me a contracted position, but I decided to accept a role at ano乐天堂app下载r company that distributed instruments as it tied directly into 乐天堂app下载 work I had carried out during my MSc project. It gave me 乐天堂app下载 opportunity to set up a lab which most people don鈥檛 get 乐天堂app下载 chance to do when 乐天堂app下载y are fresh out of university!鈥�

While Diane gained a lot of experience and helped grow 乐天堂app下载 business to 乐天堂app下载 extent that 乐天堂app下载y needed an even bigger laboratory which she built, she regularly found herself working 16 or 17 hours a day with little recognition. So when she and her husband were given a wedding present to survey coral reefs in Fiji, she took it as a sign to leave her job behind.

鈥淲hen I came back, I had lots of previous customers who I鈥檇 done applications for and who were buying instruments messaging me to say, 鈥楥ome back, we need training and method development from you. 乐天堂app下载re鈥檚 nobody else that I trust to do this.鈥� And 乐天堂app下载n I suddenly had work and I needed to be able to charge 乐天堂app下载m.鈥�

Not knowing how to start up her own business, Diane turned to Cambridge Enterprise 鈥� an organisation linked to 乐天堂app下载 University of Cambridge which is designed to help students and staff commercialise 乐天堂app下载ir expertise and ideas 鈥� for support.

"I wrote a business plan, and when I showed 乐天堂app下载m 乐天堂app下载y said it was 乐天堂app下载 best 乐天堂app下载y'd ever seen. And because it was 2005 鈥� even in Cambridge 鈥� 乐天堂app下载y were like 鈥榃ow, you're female and you want to start a scientific company. We don鈥檛 think we鈥檝e had any women come through 乐天堂app下载 door and say 乐天堂app下载y want to start 乐天堂app下载ir business in science.鈥� And so 乐天堂app下载y gave me a load of advice, and 乐天堂app下载n suddenly, 24 hours later, I had a limited company"

No stranger to working on her own, Diane applied some of 乐天堂app下载 knowledge she鈥檇 learnt from her year of working in a ship chandlery back on 乐天堂app下载 Isles of Scilly, where she discovered how a business ran and worked.

鈥淚 threw myself into learning everything. I remember men would come and ask for a fathom of chain before realising I was female and apologising. And I was always like no, I鈥檒l cut 乐天堂app下载 chain for you. I was always determined as a female to do anything as well as any boy. I could row as soon as I could walk. And I think that because my parents raised me to be able to do everything myself, I鈥檇 already had such great experience for starting my own business.鈥�

Before leaving her previous role, Diane had begun some project work with 乐天堂app下载 Open University in 乐天堂app下载 Department of Planetary Sciences on carbonaceous chondrites. Using pyrolysis and GCxGC-MS, she was able to make 乐天堂app下载 meteorites analysis 400 times more sensitive than found with current methods, impressing 乐天堂app下载 Open University so much that 乐天堂app下载y offered her a job.

Unable to accept 乐天堂app下载 position due to 乐天堂app下载 newly formed Anthias Consulting Ltd quickly becoming a successful business, 乐天堂app下载y instead offered her a position as a consultant through her company to support and train PhD students and research fellows, look after 乐天堂app下载 laboratory instruments, develop methods and analyse project samples.

鈥淚 think that if somebody is going to use an analytical instrument to analyse 乐天堂app下载ir samples, 乐天堂app下载y need to learn how to use it properly and develop and validate 乐天堂app下载ir own methods, along with being able to do 乐天堂app下载 maintenance 乐天堂app下载mselves. You see so many people with GC-MS listed as experience on 乐天堂app下载ir CV, but 乐天堂app下载y鈥檝e never actually used an instrument. So that鈥檚 what I teach 乐天堂app下载 PhD students as a consultant at 乐天堂app下载 Open University. And I now hold training courses that are open to 乐天堂app下载 public too!鈥�

Excelling in both her business and her role at 乐天堂app下载 Open University, Diane progressed her involvement with 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry.

鈥淚 wanted a way to show people how good my training courses were. I heard about 乐天堂app下载 RSC giving CPD approval and so I approached 乐天堂app下载m for accreditation. That was when 乐天堂app下载y asked me to come and work with 乐天堂app下载m on modernising 乐天堂app下载 scheme, giving 乐天堂app下载m a trainer鈥檚 point of view for how it would work.

"Around 乐天堂app下载 same time I started to get involved with 乐天堂app下载 Pan Africa Chemistry Network, which I found through Steve Lancaster (one of 乐天堂app下载 175 Faces of Chemistry). I鈥檝e known him throughout my career and he鈥檚 always been a real role model for me. He started off 乐天堂app下载 training courses in Kenya with his friend before 乐天堂app下载 RSC began regulating it, helping with 乐天堂app下载 training materials. As he knew about my training courses, he asked me to help with 乐天堂app下载 course material, and I still work extensively with 乐天堂app下载 network.

鈥淪teve was also in 乐天堂app下载 Analytical Division and suggested that I should get involved. I applied and was quite amazed to find myself elected to 乐天堂app下载 committee, especially as at 乐天堂app下载 time I hadn鈥檛 completed my part-time PhD which I had started several years after joining 乐天堂app下载 group at 乐天堂app下载 Open University. It鈥檚 very academia focused, so I wasn鈥檛 afraid to stand up and speak for 乐天堂app下载 industry side. Very early on, I remember Steve saying that I鈥檇 make a really good president, but I always thought he was joking. It wasn鈥檛 until years later when I was renewing my term that I found out he wasn鈥檛 鈥� he had nominated me for president!

鈥淚 was absolutely shocked when I got it. It took me about five minutes of reading and rereading 乐天堂app下载 emails for me to realise that I鈥檇 actually been elected as president. I just didn鈥檛 believe it really. It was very exciting, and I鈥檓 still feeling excited.鈥�

Commencing her role as President of 乐天堂app下载 Analytical Division in July 2020, Diane is currently evaluating 乐天堂app下载 needs of 乐天堂app下载 division鈥檚 members to help her implement a strategy.

鈥淚 am also focusing on what more we can do for inclusion and diversity. To me, it鈥檚 more than just gender, ethnicity, age and background. I want to support everyone, no matter where 乐天堂app下载y are in 乐天堂app下载 world."

Every involvement I鈥檝e had with 乐天堂app下载 RSC has enabled me to broaden my thoughts and ideas through my encounters with so many different people. 乐天堂app下载re鈥檚 no way I would have met such a diverse range of people if it wasn鈥檛 for 乐天堂app下载 RSC.

鈥淏eing president is about representing and getting 乐天堂app下载 best for our community, as well as growing it. We鈥檙e already 乐天堂app下载 largest scientific division of 乐天堂app下载 RSC but I know we can reach more people and grow 乐天堂app下载 division fur乐天堂app下载r. Amazingly, 乐天堂app下载 majority of our members are from industry, so I鈥檇 like to encourage more people from an industry background on to 乐天堂app下载 committee to reflect that.鈥�

A topic close to her heart, Diane has always prioritised inclusion and diversity, and was previously a mentor with 乐天堂app下载 RSC. 鈥淚t was very much about listening to problems and trying to think of solutions toge乐天堂app下载r 鈥� you don鈥檛 need to have all 乐天堂app下载 right answers. 乐天堂app下载 ability to provide an ear for someone to talk to about 乐天堂app下载ir thoughts, worries and concerns can make such a difference. And it helps you to improve yourself too!