QAEHS in Focus shines the spotlight on QAEHS staff and students to showcase the expertise and talent within our Centre
How long have you worked at QAEHS? 
I started at QAEHS in December 2025 as a Visiting Academic where I am working on a part of my individual postdoctoral research project called AQUAGloCon.
How do you explain your job to people?
I am a researcher focusing on the development of sampling techniques and the identification of chemical pollutants in water. Instead of looking for a short list of substances, I try to see the full chemical picture, so that important pollutants are not missed — especially new ones we don’t yet fully understand. The fact that we don't know these chemicals doesn't mean they can't pose risks to the environment or human health, and there are still many chemicals we don’t know yet.
What is your favourite thing about working at QAEHS?
What I like most at QAEHS is that people here are very friendly and always happy to help with anything.
What is something you learned in the last week?
I am currently undergoing training on a GC-Orbitrap (gas chromatograph coupled to an Orbitrap mass spectrometer) which I will use for the analysis of my samples. I have learned how to run a batch of samples. I also recently started going to the gym and I learned how to do a deadlift.
What has been your career path that led to your current position at QAEHS?
I completed all my studies in the Czech Republic at Masaryk University in the field of Environmental Chemistry, focusing on passive sampling of water pollutants. My supervisor has been collaborating with researchers from QAEHS for several years. Originally, I planned to undertake an internship at QAEHS during my PhD. However, this was in 2021, and I was unable to go due to COVID restrictions. After completing my PhD, I spent two years as postdoctoral researcher at the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. My desire to go to Australia remained strong, so together with my PhD supervisor and Sarit from QAEHS, I wrote a project proposal that was successful. I was awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship and joined QAEHS for two years to work on my project.
What research are you working on now?
My research focuses on the identification and prioritization of unknown emerging contaminants in freshwater and marine water samples collected using passive samplers deployed at various locations worldwide within the AQUA-GAPS/MONET network. The aim of my project is to assess the global distribution of prioritized unknown emerging contaminants and to provide baseline data that can be used for future monitoring.
What is your favourite movie?
I don’t have one favourite movie, but I enjoyed watching Dune, and Guardians of the Galaxy movies. I also really love watching Czech fairy-tale movies, especially around Christmas time or when I am ill and staying in bed. The Czech cult movie Pelíšky, which follows stories of diverse characters around the time of Soviet invasion into Czechoslovakia in 1968 with typical Czech cynical humour, is a must-watch for me every Christmas Eve.
Random fact you would like to share about yourself.
My husband and I share the same birthday. On our first date, I asked him to show me his ID, because I couldn’t believe it. Although I am one year older than him, he never misses a chance to remind me that I am “old”.
This work was funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme under the grant agreement 101206683 (AQUAGloCon). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
