Public outreach: going beyond the classroom
Teachers teach. Whether in a traditional classroom, at a field station, to a group of students, or to a curious neighbor. Public outreach, then, is nothing more than teaching outside of the traditional academic setting. Teaching for me began while I was working as a naturalist in Costa Rica, so from the very start I have been actively working with public audiences to foster scientific and ecological literacy.
From radar to raining birds
For the last five years I have been developing a citizen-based science program to monitor bird migration over the eastern United States. As a result I have been an invited speaker for a number of community clubs and organizations focused on birds (specifically) and/or nature (generally). These experiences have both helped me formalize many of my research ideas, and learn new ways to convey scientific information to a general audience. In turn I have been able to teach hundreds of nature enthusiasts, spanning multiple generations, the techniques necessary for interpreting weather radar to better understand bird migration. You can learn all about this project at its website, http://www.woodcreeper.com
Blitzing the biosphere
One of the events I have enjoyed most since becoming a professional ecologist, has been partaking in bio-blitzes around the northeastern US. A bioblitz is an event where scientists and the general public work together to document all of the living species in a given area, usually during a 24-hour period (hence the "blitz!"). Most recently I participated in the Austin Dam Bioblitz, where we tallied over 70 species of birds (not bad for being late in migration). In the wee hours I set up some recorders to capture the dawn chorus. Afterwards I used some cool software to make sonograms of the recordings, so we could visualize the sounds. Doing so makes it easier to identify otherwise confusing bird songs. You can view an example below:
Can you pick out the Blackburnian Warbler song? It's the one that starts out high, and then gets REALLY high!