Outreach
Astronomy has the unique power to spark an interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for people of any age. Most kids that grew up with Star Wars or perhaps looked up a the sky with a small telescope, are naturally inclined to crave knowledge about the galaxies, stars and planets. As researchers and educators, I think it is crucial that we work to keep this craving alive and encourage independent critical thinking at an early stage. This is why, for instance, I joined a program in Denmark to go as postdoc to 8th grade classrooms and give the students a personal experience about a what research in STEM is like. It is important that we make a career in STEM equally accessible and welcoming to all minorities. As a step in that direction, I am currently co-chairing the Gender Minorities at Steward group, providing a safe space for gender minorities to share thoughts and opportunities:
See a full summary of my “Organizational Work” following the link below.
I am currently organizing talk series for researchers around the world dealing with Galaxy Evolution theory, with focus on highlighting work by students and postdocs. See a time table and more info at the Galaxy Crawl link below.
Go to Galaxy Crawl talk series›
I strongly believe that only a scientifically and technologically informed citizenry can respect and find solutions to the climate change and pollution that this planet suffers from. For a list of my public and academic talks, see the link for “Talks and Inverviews” below.