FABIans said a sad goodbye to Dr Elisa Pal at a farewell in the FABI courtyard on 5 December. Elisa returns to France to take up a position at INRAE in Avignon after completing her PhD entitled “Ecology and management of Bathycoelia distincta (two-spotted stink bug) in Macadamia orchards in South Africa” earlier this year. Elisa was the first PhD candidate to join the Macadamia Protection Programme (affectionately known as the ‘Mad Macs’) under the leadership and supervision of Dr Gerda Fourie in 2019 and completed her PhD despite the challenges faced by the Covid pandemic. She even kept her stink bugs at home during the pandemic to ensure their survival. Elisa was praised for giving so much to the Institute and also for the excellence of her work. She was selected as the ‘FABIan of the Year’ in 2022 but received numerous other accolades including Best oral presentation at the International Society of Chemical Ecology (ISCE) Conference (2021), FABI Student Award for Mentorship (2021), Runner-up of "The Conversation Africa Student Essay Competition" (2020) and FABI student Award for the Best Website (2019). FABI wishes Elisa all the very best on this exciting new chapter of her career.