Simon Lagneaux
Simon Lagneaux is a freelance UX designer from Belgium who thinks cheese is a miracle and views the Earth as a continual source of inspiration. Driven by visual harmony and complex problem sets, Simon works with companies and organizations that positively contribute to the public sector, whether it’s environmentalists, documentary filmmakers, progressive startups, or activists. As the co-mastermind behind our website, Simon designed and prototyped our digital dreams to help communicate with our developers.
In conversation with Simon:
Share your life story in six words:
My motto, in french, my native language: ‘Souviens-toi de toujours oser’. Which translates to ‘Remember to always dare’
When was your first brush with science?
Searching for prehistoric flint tools in freshly plowed farm fields in the Belgian countryside.
What’s your current obsession? In other words, what wakes you up every morning?
Planning bikepacking routes in the American west.
Why do you think bacteria are important?
They evolved with us and in us to reach this incredible symbiosis. They are our trusty partners in the adventure of life.
How do you define science?
Investigating life in all its aspects, looking not only for answers (because answers alone are boring), but also for new questions and fields of inquiry.
How do you define health?
Body and mind sharpened and eager to explore, create, and love.
What are you currently reading / listening to / watching?
An fantastic cookbook/manual from one of the best restaurants in the world: The Noma Guide to Fermentation
Favorite microbiome-nurturing food?
Nattō (soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis var. natto)
Scientist, dead or alive, you’d like to have lunch with?
Alexander von Humboldt: scientist, philosopher, explorer. He roamed through most of South America, describing plants, animals, ecosystems, weather patterns, geology,… He was also the first scientist to describe human-induced climate change, in 1800!
Microbiome perturbation you’re trying to give up:
Antibiotics. Sometimes necessary, but I mourn the damage to my microbiome every time.
Favorite science joke?
Schrodinger’s cat walks into a bar. And doesn’t.
Most mindgasmic thing you’ve learned since being involved with Seed?
The balancing act between all living entities and our planet, the dangers for that balance looming both outside and inside us, but also the solutions for the future.
The song you get sh*t done to:
Connan Mockasin: Megumi the Milkyway Above
One fact most people don’t know about you:
I’ve never broken a bone (and I sure have tried really hard).
