Biotechnologist above the Arctic Circle

Célia Pas (28) had not actually planned to move north for work; too dark, too cold. ‘I’m very much affected by the weather and am happiest when the sun is shining’, says the biotechnology scientist via a video call. Her location gives the game away, however. Pas has been living on the Lofoten Islands, an archipelago above the Arctic Circle in Norway, since early 2025. ‘Now I actually look forward to winter!’

From south to north

Pas works as an R&D specialist at ACD Pharma. She conducts research into bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) that could replace antibiotics in the fishing industry. ‘After my PhD, I felt stuck for a while’, says Pas. ‘I desperately wanted to continue working with bacteriophages — they are such fascinating organisms. We’ve barely scratched the surface.’ After a year of searching for a postdoctoral position, a professor connected Pas with her current employer. She had her doubts. ‘I was actually looking for a job in the south, somewhere warm and bright.’

After a few remote interviews, Pas decided to look into the Lofoten Islands more closely. She was quickly won over. ‘The region is stunning, and it’s not nearly as cold as I’d imagined.’ During the pitch-black winter, Pas travelled via three flights to ACD Pharma’s brand-new laboratory for an introductory visit. ‘The location is incredible. We’re surrounded by mountains, and from the coffee room we look out over the sea.’

The trials of moving

Time to move — but how do you get a household’s worth of belongings, a piano, a car, and two cats to the Lofoten Islands? ‘It was a challenge, involving a great deal of paperwork and considerable expense’, says Pas. ‘By taking it one step at a time and quickly putting the stress of each phase behind me, I managed it.’ During a five-day road trip with her mother and her plants, Pas fell in love with Norway. ‘The culture is very different from Belgium. On the Lofoten Islands, life carries on when it gets dark. Locals put up their cosiest lights, ski down the mountains, and help tourists out of ditches after sliding off the icy roads.’

Fish and phages

Pas explains that fishermen in some countries dump vast quantities of antibiotics into the sea to combat infections, contributing to the resistance crisis. ‘A bacteriophage only infects and kills the specific bacterium you want to target. It’s a natural solution. Once the bacterium is gone, the phage disappears along with it.’ In the laboratory, Pas researches techniques to keep the organisms — which normally live in the sea — viable in a lab environment. She is also working on efficient methods for producing the phages. ‘It would be wonderful if I could contribute to bringing a new phage product to market.’

For the foreseeable future, the biotechnologist is very much at home on the Lofoten Islands. ‘If nothing else, so I don’t have to move again any time soon’, she says with a laugh. ‘Even so, I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to do something like this but doesn’t quite dare. If you can manage something like that, you can handle anything the world throws at you.’