The Analytical Zen Podcast

Biography and Research: See Orcid.org/0000-0001-8344-6582 (presenting 100+ academic works) Dr. Geraldine M. Dowling  PFHEA, SFHEA has over 20 years of experience in forensic lab work, forensic/clinical and analytical toxicology, food safety and drug residue testing, method validation and ISO 17025 laboratory accreditation. She also has more than 10 years in academia as a university educator.  She was past elected member of Academic Council at Atlantic Technological University and member of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Working Group.  Her research spans  forensic and  clinical toxicology, with a focus on forensic science,  medicine, clinical practice, metabolomics, lipidomics, drug testing, drug harm reduction, laboratory accreditation and  additionally teaching education pedagogies (universal design for learning and community based learning).   Dr. Dowling is an internationally recognized researcher and gives international lectures.  She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), awarded for her excellence in teaching, research and leadership. She is the creator and host of The Analytical Zen Podcast, designed to make complex scientific concepts accessible to students and the public (available on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts).    She serves as Vice Chair  of the United Kingdom and Ireland Association of Forensic Toxicologists (professional body), representing forensic practitioners across England, Ireland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Channel Islands. She is also the elected regional representative for Ireland with the International Association of Forensic Toxicologists, a member of the Society of Forensic Toxicologists (USA) and an elected member of the London Toxicology Group Committee.   Dr. Dowling has trained professional staff and students in ISO 17025-accredited national government laboratories in Ireland and abroad, including The State Laboratory, Teagasc and the Marine Institute. She is a Principal Investigator, supervising postgraduate students (PhD/MSc).   Dr. Dowling was an invited contributor to the Irish Government's "Emerging Drug Trends and Drug Checking Working Group", which aims to introduce safer harm-reduction strategies.   She is a contributing author, reviewer and editor for international journals, including Drug Testing and Analysis, Journal of Analytical Toxicology and Forensic Science Review. She has written, edited and co-authored four books. Dr. Dowling is  the current Editor-in-Chief of the IACFT Journal  [ISSN 3088-6600] and Outgoing  Editor-in-Chief  (2026) of the  Science Undergraduate Research Experience Journal  [ISSN 2990-8167].   She is a Visiting  Professor of Toxicology and Forensic Science at Kingston University, holds a Visiting Senior Lecturer appointment (2024) at King’s College London, UK and holds a Honorary Senior Lecturer appointment (2023) at Barts and The London School of Medicine & Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, UK. She previously held an Adjunct Assistant Professor appointment (2020) at Trinity College Dublin.   Dr. Dowling’s work has had a lasting impact, with Ireland’s Marine Institute applying her methods in aquaculture monitoring since 2006 and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) adopting her research for drug monitoring since 2011. Her work as Principal Investigator, along with that of the students she supervises, has resulted in multiple validated methods being accredited on several occasions by the Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB) and used nationally. In addition, selected work she developed has been  used  in international proficiency testing schemes.