Every year, EIROforum research organisations invite the winners of the EIROforum special sponsored prizes from the European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS) to visit and experience major research facilities across Europe. This year, Vincent Engelbrecht, winner of the EUROfusion-sponsored prize at EUCYS 2025, travelled to the UKAEA (United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority)Campus in Culham, UK, to discover fusion research up close.
During the visit, Vincent met researchers and engineers working on the JET and MAST-U tokamaks, gaining a first-hand look at the science, technology and teamwork behind Europe’s fusion programme. For the 19-year-old student from Germany, whose prize-winning EUCYS project focused on a zoo management system, the chance to step inside one of fusion research’s best-known sites was “both unexpected and inspiring”, as he commented.
“I’m very, very excited to be here,” said Vicent during the visit. “It’s a lovely place and seeing all this machinery … just to see the control room and the entire engineering behind it, it’s just fascinating. I think it’s almost like art.”
Although JET is no longer operating, seeing the facility up close still leaves a strong impression. The visit offered a chance to understand the scale of fusion research and to speak directly with the people who make it possible, from scientists to engineers.
Reflecting on the award, Vincent confessed he had not expected to win the prize and left a message for other young people thinking about taking part in science contests: “Start researching or trying to find out about a topic. It doesn’t matter which aspect it is — biology, chemistry, physics or even language studies. The important thing is to have the fascination to dive into a subject and discover what is behind it.”
He added that even when a project does not go as planned, curiosity and persistence still matter: “Even if the project turns out to be a dud, or you don’t win a prize or anything, stay with this mindset of continuing to try and learn and follow your dreams of this project.”
Summing up the experience, Vincent described it as “very, very interesting … fascinating, and very educational as well.”
Through visits like this, EUROfusion helps open the door to fusion research for the next generation, showing how science, engineering and international collaboration come together on the road to fusion energy.