"Well, why weren't you here before?' "an interview with Lawerence Friedl

Lawrence Friedl discusses his life and experiences as Director of the Applied Sciences Program in the Earth Science Division at NASA Headquarters. Interested in space from a young age, he developed an interest in how the environment and public policy...

"It's not just about the ocean, it's about the intersection of the ocean with other earth systems." an interview with Paula Bontempi

After being drawn to the oceans at an early age, Paula continues to examine many factors that influence changes in the oceans. As a program manager for NASA, she enjoys the opportunity to work with dedicated researchers and learn how...

"Returning and Relearning in Bejing, China." an interview with Qingyun Duan

When Quinyan Duan was a student in China, he found his way into hydropower engineering. He wanted to pursue a graduate degree but couldn’t find the right professor to guide him. He took the difficult step of applying in the...

“We give them a little bit of a show. " An Interview With Duane Waliser

Duane Waliser’s path in science meandered from an Oregon apple farm to a UCSD Oceanography institute to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he now serves as the Chief Scientist for the Earth Science and Technology Directorate. At JPL, Duane helps...

“I have friends that do kinds of jobs that you wouldn't expect scientists to do if you didn't know better.” An interview with Erica Bickford

Erica Bickford’s advice to early career scientists or students is to look outside academia and explore all the potential career options available to scientists. She is particularly aware of the importance of science in daily life and in the policy...

"Truth and Love are the solution…" Suzanne Lewis-Johnson & Nichole Terrett discuss their work in the fight against human trafficking.

Nichole Terrett, 32, and Suzanne Lewis-Johnson, friends and colleagues at RAHAB Ministries discuss how their lives brought them into the work against human trafficking, truth & justice and how healthy relationships are one of the most important change-makers for victims...

"I quit my job to look for invisible matter" Dusty Schroeder shares his story with Kathy Vega

Geophysicist Dusty Schroeder and University of Colorado engineering student Kathy Vega talk about their first-to-college experiences and their field of radioglaciology and cryospheric science. Dusty shares his story of how one science lecture changed his whole life's trajection. (Recorded 14...

The Interdisciplinary Scientist: Juan Declet-Barreto, 2018 June 7

In this interview, part of the AGU Narratives project and AGU Paths Through Science, Juan Declet-Barreto discusses his work with the Union of Concerned Scientists, his involvement with the Thriving Earth Exchange (TEX), and the forces that shaped his path...

"A lot of teachers that I had as a child they inspired me and I was like man, I really like what they do." An interview with Brian Campbell

Meet Brian Campbell, a NASA Senior Earth Science Specialist who works with satellite missions like ICESat-2, SMAP, GPM and with the NASA GLOBE Program, including the NASA GLOBE Observer Citizen Science App. He is passionate about making the plethora of...

"Geoscience investigates the past, it measures the present, and it models the future behavior of our planet."

AGU Virtual Poster Showcase Winner with Marlene Vargas-Sanchez, master’s student in earth science at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

"If I can be welcomed in this group, doing this work, maybe they can too." an interview with David Crisp

David Crisp, senior research scientist at NASA, recounted his adventures, from going from a physics education major who had a paper on Venus winds published by Carl Sagan to a doctoral student at Princeton to helping fix Hubble. He described...

"Sharp Observations from a Keen Observer." an interview with Susan Loizer

We won’t say how long Susan Lozier has been shaping young minds at Duke University (she may let it slip), but she talks about amazing changes that have happened during her tenure. She grew up wondering how rivers get polluted,...

"Using space to help us dream.” an interview with Margaret Kivelson with Fran Bagenal

In begin in 1979, when Margaret Kivelson, UCLA, was part one of three women presenting a talk in which Fran Bagenal, University of Colorado Boulder, was sitting in the audience. They have been space scientists and collaborators for many years...

"I can't be an expert in everything." an interview with Denise Hills

Denise Hills, Director in Geological Survey of Alabama and AGU leader shares stories of her collaborative experiences and how it has shaped her career. She discusses the significance of the growth of science and the importance of communicating science to...

"We must never forget about the free-thinking in science." an interview with Chris Ballentine

Chris Ballentine, University of Oxford, discusses his work as "helium hunter," seeking global reserves of Helium, significant as a natural resource-limited in its scope. Chris discusses geopolitics and the need for the market to drive the search for helium which...

“The best thing I could do with my astronomy degree was to share astronomy with other people." An interview with Alex Lockwood

Dr. Alex Lockwood is the project scientist on the science communication team for the James Webb Space Telescope at the Space Telescope Science Institute. While earning her Ph.D. in Planetary Astronomy and Science, Alex had the unique opportunity to star...

"We not only found the results, but we also found the solution." an interview with Tong Zhu

Tong Zhu atmospheric chemist and university professor shares his experiences studying air pollution and its impacts on human health. Reflecting on how past discoveries influence solutions and how those solutions impact government policy. He shares stories about his work for...

"AGU is interdisciplinary, [it] helps breaks down the disciplinary stovepipe we often get into." an interview with Jim Irons

Jim Irons grew up in the 1960s and 1970s in Cleveland when environmental conservation was becoming more important for society, but it wasn’t until the Cuyahoga River in his hometown of Cleveland caught on fire in 1969 that his desire...

"We make discoveries when not expecting results." an interview with Roberta Rudnick

Roberta Rudnick, Professor at University of California Santa Barbara, was captivated by science from a young age, witnessing the Mt. Saint Helens eruption while in college, and traveling the globe to understand plate tectonics, and how and why continents form...

"It’s Always Sunny in Climate Science." an interview with Phil Mote

Is it a good time to be a climate scientist? Yes, says Phil Mote, Director Oregon Climate Change Research Institute at Oregon State University. Predictions over the past 40 years are coming true and while some look at that with...

"My greatest contribution is the students that come through my program." an interview with Emily Schaller

Emily Schaller, project manager at NASA's National Suborbital Research Center at Ames, discusses her Ph.D. work studying the clouds on Titan and her work as a science and education. She recalled how as a young child, she would study illustrations...

"AGU is the most important gathering of geoscientists in the world." an interview with Ioan Lascu

Ioan Lascu, research geologist at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, shares stories of his work studying minerals and rock magnetism. What do bacteria affect magnetism? What can we learn from stalagmites and stalactites? Why has there been in a...

"We may be close to a tipping point…over fifty percent of the Amazon may be lost within decades." an interview with Carlos Nobre

Carlos Nobre is a climate scientist with the Institute of Advanced Science in Brazil. Together with twelve hundred scientists, he organized the largest scientific experiment in the Amazon forest, with eleven research towers analyzing water vapor, carbon dioxide, energy balance,...

“There are no dumb questions, be confident and know that you are the expert in your field.” an interview with Linette McPartland

Imagine this upbringing: only child, suburbs of Maryland, daughter of a mathematician and a pastry chef. If you guessed that child would achieve a management role with NASA’s famed IceBridge2 mission, congratulations, you truly have exceptional foresight. Linette Boisvert McPartland...