Not An Outsider EP7 | Disabled US scholar boosts China's microbiology research globally: We are family

Dr. Christopher Rensing, 58, is one of the world's leading microbiologists. Earlier this year, he was elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology for 2021. In 1998, he was diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease, and as his condition worsened, he had to use an electric wheelchair. "I've always been hoping to build a large-scale, world-class research group and did not give up my dream even after I was diagnosed with a physical disability," said Dr. Rensing.

That's how Dr. Rensing came to Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (FAFU) in 2016, where he established his own microbiology laboratory and started a new chapter in his life. "China values talents and fully protects opportunities for personal growth," he exclaimed. During his tenure at FAFU, he received a large amount of research funding and established his own environmental microbiology laboratory.

In addition, the university took his physical condition into consideration and provided him with comprehensive support, such as adapting his accessible apartment, office and lab, and helping him alleviate the financial stress of his medical treatment in China. "Chinese food, like Chinese people, gives me a warm comfort and superb feeling," he kept stressing that "we are family".

Dr. Rensing is grateful for the thoughtful care he has received in China. Through his reputation and contacts in the international academia, he has helped students plan for further study and has actively recommended many students to be exchange scholars at leading universities abroad. He has also assisted in bringing international microbiology experts to work in Chinese universities, raising the level of environmental microbiology research in China and training a number of influential Chinese scientists.

In 2019 and 2020, Dr. Rensing was included in the list of Chinese Most Cited Researchers in Immunology and Microbiology published by Elsevier, the only scholar selected from FAFU. "I will try my best to contribute more to the university," he said. What's more, he actively helped translate and polish papers on the prevention and control of the pandemic, sharing China's anti-epidemic experience and achievements with the rest of the world.

(With inputs from DotDotNews' reporter in Fujian: He Dehua)