Doctoral Researcher · ETH Zürich · Barnes Group
FionnFerreira
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01Born on the Coast
Growing up in Ballydehob, West Cork, son of two boatbuilders, kayaking the wild Atlantic coastline with his dog India. Every tide brought more plastic ashore. At seven years old, that bothered him enormously. It still does.
02The Invention
At 16, Fionn discovered that ferrofluid, a magnetic liquid, it binds to microplastic particles. His method could extract them from water using magnets. In 2019, it won the Google Science Fair Global Grand Prize, beating 2,000+ projects from 80+ countries with his invention.
03The Platform
From the World Economic Forum in Davos to the House of Lords in London, Fionn has taken the microplastics crisis to the world's biggest stages. Forbes 30 Under 30. National Geographic Explorer. TV presenter. Fluent in five languages.
04The Lab
Now a doctoral researcher in Professor Alexander Barnes' group at ETH Zürich, Fionn is developing high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets for NMR spectroscopy, making the instruments of discovery themselves more sustainable.
curriculum vitae · publications & patents
Research & Education
timeline
Doctoral Researcher
ETH Zürich — Barnes Group
HTS magnets for sustainable NMR spectroscopy
MSc Chemistry
University of Groningen
Sustainable organic redox flow batteries · Cum Laude
Arctic Chemical Oceanography
UNIS Svalbard
Microplastic distribution in polar waters and glacial ice
BSc Chemistry
University of Groningen
Foundations in chemistry and materials science
Google Science Fair · Grand Prize
Global, 2,000+ entries · 80 countries
Ferrofluid-based microplastic extraction
awards
- Google Science Fair Global Grand Prize2019
- Straubel Leadership Award2019
- WEF Plastic Action Champion2020
- National Geographic Young Explorer2021
- GPAP Young Plastic Action Champion2021
- Forbes 30 Under 302021
- Renaissance Award by EcoAge2021
- Vatican Premio Giuseppe Sciacca2022
- European Patent Office Young Inventor's Prize2023
- Bambi Award2023
- Intel ISEF 2nd Place2018
publications & patents
A novel method for the removal of microplastics from aquatic environments using ferrofluids
paperGoogle Science Fair — Research Paper · 2019
Ferrofluid-based separation of microplastic particles from aqueous media
patentWWSPTO · 2020
Filed
→ record
Speaking & Event Locations
Cities where Fionn has keynoted, taught, or appeared on stage.
On Stage
Plastics, Circular Economy & Sustainability
The full complexity of the plastics puzzle
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Plastics, Circular Economy & Sustainability
Bioplastics, recycling, microplastics — and why the plastic problem cannot be blamed on the consumer alone. Drawing on Fionn's experience as a WEF Global Plastic Action Partnership Champion and his ferrofluid invention, this keynote unpacks the system behind the symptom.
+ Book this talk →Keeping a Child-Like Mindset
How imaginative play leads to scientific breakthroughs
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Keeping a Child-Like Mindset
How imaginative exploration and a state of flow lead to breakthrough invention. The mindset that took Fionn from kayaking the Atlantic coast at age 7 to winning the Google Science Fair at 18 — and what it takes to keep that lens through a doctoral career.
+ Book this talk →Science at Scale: Making Research Sustainable
Reducing the carbon cost of discovery
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Science at Scale: Making Research Sustainable
From energy-hungry NMR machines to plastic-laden oceans — how the scientific community must itself become more sustainable, and how high-temperature superconducting magnet research is rewriting the energy equation of analytical chemistry.
+ Book this talk →Davos taught me that the solution still had to come from the cove.
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In Frame
press · talks · tv · podcasts
Media Library
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FGJ
Fionn’s Green Journey
Field notes from the lab, the road, and the coast. Microplastics, sustainability, the actual science. Roughly monthly. No newsletter cosplay.
- 🔬Research updates from ETH Zürich
- 🌊Microplastics & ocean science
- 🌍Environmental policy & climate action
⭐ Join 2,895 readers
✦ Latest posts pulled live from Substack · refreshes hourly
April 2026
The Beauty and Danger of Perfect Molecules 🧪 - Fionn's Green Journey
Fionn's Green Journey, this week on PFAS pollution and what chemists are doing about it.
March 2026
⛰️ What the Alps Are Telling Us - Fionn's Green Journey
Lessons from the alps on our climate.
December 2025
🛁 Global Plastics Treaty Update - Fionn's Green Journey
Why the Plastics Treaty Failed (And Our Fightback Kit). This month on Fionn's Green Journey.
Let's Work Together
Send a note.
Speaking gigs, research collaborations, press, or just hello — the form sorts it for me. I read everything, even if it takes a week to reply.
contact@fionnferreira.com