Science Outside is an online platform where both professional scientists and citizen scientists can share stories and experiences from science done outdoors. Most of us do not and will never have a job that allows us to travel the world to document and write awesome stories, but as professional and non-professional scientists we have the unique opportunity to spend time in beautiful natural habitats in a different capacity. Our passion for our fields of interest drives us to keep crazy schedules and make trips to remote locations. Along the way we may have wondrous experiences with animals, people, and technology that range from the silly to the life altering and it’s here that we’re bringing those stories together. Do have a story to share? Visit our Submit Page and share your story!

We post about once a week when we’re not all working in the field.

Click here to see our full project description.

Contact us at: scienceoutsidesubmit@gmail.com

Our Editors:

Joe Welklin is a graduate student at Cornell University studying the behavior and physiology of Red-backed Fairy-wrens, a charismatic Australian songbird. He chases winter year-round by spending his time in Australia during the fairy-wren non-breeding season and Ithaca, New York during the school year. In his free time he enjoys running, biking, and wildlife photography. For more on his research and to see photos and videos, visit: www.josephwelklin.com and @welklinswilderness.

Sahas Barve is a post-doctoral associate at Old Dominion University. He studies the biology of Acorn Woodpeckers in California. Being a bird nerd he goes bird watching at every opportunity he gets but also enjoys cooking, singing (mostly Indian music) and reading books on world history. More on his research and blog about field stories at www.sahasbarve.com.

Anusha Shankar took a while deciding what she wanted to be- and is realizing there will never be a final answer to that question. It used to be one of: doctor, teacher, pilot, actor. She is now a PhD student in Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, and a National Geographic Explorer. She studies how hummingbirds balance their energy expenditure on a daily basis, in the deserts of Arizona and the Ecuadorian Andes. She loves salsa dancing, reading fiction, mentoring students, and walking around new places. For more on her research, visit: www.anushashankar.weebly.com.

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Andy Johnson is currently working as an Associate Producer in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Multimedia Productions department. He has loved birds since elementary school, but discovered the wide range of opportunities to pursue that passion—both scientific and otherwise—during undergraduate studies at Cornell, where he first encountered video production as a tool for science communication and conservation. He’s looking forward to more opportunities to use media to affect conservation policy, primarily where birds can serve as indicators of ecosystem health and touchpoints for communicating about broad conservation challenges. You can see more of his work on instagram @andyjohnsonphoto or by visiting andyjohnsonphoto.com.

Alison Vilag, currently (but ephemerally) of Chicago, Illinois, is a field technician and science communicator who received her B.A. from Unity College in Maine, where she studied environmental media production. Alison is at present affiliated with the Illinois Natural History Survey; the project she assists examines the significance of metropolitan forest preserves to nesting and migratory birds in the greater Chicago area. When she’s not casing suburban woodlands or moonlight bartending, Alison keeps herself entertained with canoeing, Chicago blues, and eating too much curry. Alison is passionate about using storytelling in a variety of mediums to connect people to nature; you can follow her work at @boreal_vagabond (Instagram and Twitter), @vilaga (Medium), and www.gypsygene.blogspot.com.