On the research side, I study young massive star clusters hosted by interacting galaxies and burning ring galaxies to study the effect of the environ… - Zara Randriamanakoto

Doing astronomy is like investing. It is a science that promotes innovation, an essential ingredient for the sustainable development of a country.

I studied astronomy because it was an opportunity that I could not miss and a challenge that I wanted to take up. Madagascar needed young experts in this field given its involvement in the South African SKA project as an African partner country during South Africa's bid to host SKA, the future largest observatory in the world. Today, astronomy has also become my great passion.

The main challenges I encountered were the language barriers (switching from French to English), exposure to a diverse culture in South Africa and especially adapting to the new educational system at the University of Cape Townbwhich required a lot of self-learning, self-discipline and perseverance.