Addressing the global climate crisis requires both technical and sociopolitical advancement. When a United States congressman erroneously asserted in 2009 that employing wind turbines could exacerbate global warming by lowering planetary wind levels, he was drawing what he understood to be correct conclusions from a relevant scientific paper. Without science literacy, the extraordinary findings of our collective scientific endeavors remain self-circulating: the knowledge is inaccessible to, or misinterpreted by, non-scientists. On the politicized subject of climate change, this misunderstanding is potentially catastrophic. I seek to help avoid that catastrophe through both research and advocacy. My PhD has prepared me to educate myself and others on topics of global importance; I can conduct research while also helping people understand why it is worth doing. In my postdoctoral career, I will apply my foundational knowledge of nonlinear dynamics to green engineering challenges and serve as a global science advocate and educator.
Disparities in science literacy are inhibiting the non-scientific global leadership from properly understanding why and how we must elicit a more sustainable future. To address the climate crisis, nations must prioritize against short-term national and economic interests: a course only deemed rational if the value of a sustainable future is apparent. It would be naïve to conclude that a scientific degree is necessary to govern. Rather, we as scientists must endeavor to communicate our findings to a broader audience; we as citizens must regard those findings as neither complete nor absolute.
Academic research is built on the inclusion of diverse perspectives. Peer review ensures that several individuals with different specialties and backgrounds agree on a research outcome before it is shared with the public; sabbaticals often enable faculty to conduct research in different locations, with different day-to-day collaborators, because such cross-cultural engagement is known to improve the research output of all involved. To succeed, our shared endeavor to forward human understanding and improve how we interact with our surroundings must be made accessible to all those who believe in it. Embracing diverse perspectives leads us, in my mind, away from the trappings of groupthink and heuristic limitation: Science needs diversity, as do our research labs. Equitable opportunity to contribute is thus the responsibility of project and lab managers around the world.
My research will benefit from diverse perspectives just as Science does. I must ensure that collaborators, joining me from around the world, receive equitable resources: remain flexible to those who approach problems differently than I do and compassionate to those who must balance personal obligations with professional ones. If I provide each researcher with the particular attention that most helps them succeed, then I and my team succeed together.
I endeavor to keep in mind that collaboration supersedes competition: that one’s success signifies success of the lab. For example, on a recent machine learning research project that my PhD advisor gave me the authority to manage, I enabled collaboration between a senior Chinese undergraduate and a local high school student. The three of us learned from one another throughout the project’s timeline. They have told me that they are both excited to pursue research careers: strong evidence that their experience at Duke was as motivating as it was productive.
Much of what holds true in the research lab holds true in the classroom as well. Whether as a visiting scholar or a regular lecturer, I will instill an environment of respect and collaboration in my audience; in my experience assisting in teaching at Duke University, students who respect and are respected by the instructor are more likely to study the material seriously. I will do my best to enable active, interactive learning so that students can learn from one another and I can learn from them in turn. Again, in my experience these modes of teaching improve both attitude and performance among students.
I will also remain cognizant of the fact that we tend to teach to our own personality types. I am an outgoing person who learns well through discourse and practice, but I understand that others learn better through reading and reflection. I do my best to enable students with different learning styles and confidence levels to approach the material equitably: as they are most comfortable. This then enables more learning and an overall better experience for everyone. We are not born knowing what it takes to succeed in a given class, or in a given career; respect and humility, as core principles behind my clearly articulated community expectations, enable high but achievable standards which lead to better learning environments.