Episode 3 - A. Murat Eren: "All is serendipity"

Welcome to another episode of MVIF Conversations – the Podcast! In this episode, we are joined by Dr. A. Murat Eren - known to many as Meren - a computer scientist turned microbial ecologist whose work has fundamentally reshaped how researchers analyze and visualize complex microbiome data. Now based at the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity in Germany, Meren is a leading advocate for open, reproducible, and community-driven science.Together with our hosts Svetlana Ugarcina Perovic and Christina Pavloudi, he reflects on his unconventional path to microbes, the birth and evolution of the open-source platform anvi’o, and the realities of sustaining community software in modern microbiome research. The conversation also explores mentoring and transparency in academia.A thoughtful and forward-looking discussion on open science, collaboration, and the future of microbiome research.Want to know more about MVIF? Visit: https://www.microbiome-vif.org/