Two Batswana women scientists have relished the opportunities conferred by the L�Oreal - UNESCO For Women in Science Young Talents Sub Saharan Africa awards. The duo, Ms Mesha Mbisana, a doctoral student in analytical chemistry and Ms Bonolo Phinius, a doctoral student in infectious diseases were part of the 30 winners of the 14th L�Oreal - UNESCO awards. Speaking at the dialogue session in Kasane, Ms Phinius said her research was on the prevalence of the Hepatitis B virus (HPV) in Botswana, and that she was following participants in 30 rural and urban communities to guide policy on prevention strategies. Ms Phinius stated that her mentors connected her to the awards where she developed interest, applied and became a beneficiary through financial support to help conduct her research. �I knew what I wanted from a young age, and I studied hard in pursuit of my dreams with the help of my teachers who pushed me to attain 48 points in my BGCSE,� she said. She attributed her success to family and mentorship support. She also noted that there were opportunities available online for one to benefit from. Ms Phinius also said her career path had helped her push barriers and empower other women to pursue their passions and to bridge the gender gap in sciences. For her part, Ms Mbisana said her research work was aimed to improve the safety of food crops by removing harmful toxins. She said she was developing effective and sustainable methods to analyse and remove toxic compounds produced by certain types of fungi from food such as maize and sorghum. She said some stored crops gathered molds and fungus which was not healthy for humans. Ms Mbisana also said her career path required an open mind to absorb diverse material not just science oriented. She encouraged people to leverage on digital media platforms such as LinkedIn to connect with people from across the globe and explore opportunities available online. She highlighted that it was imperative for women to conduct scientific discoveries that would improve economic growth.