Being a Mind Mover Intern has been an eye-opening experience. As an environmental science major, I have always had a personal appreciation for nature. However, the passion can at times be muddled amidst everyday stresses, college course requirements, and larger world problems that feel out of my control. My internship at The Mind Museum has reinvigorated my sense of mission and reminded me of what I love about science.
Science is about curiosity, exploration, and problem solving. It is about a deep love for everything around us, and our different ways of understanding the world. Science is about asking the tough questions and endlessly seeking and questioning answers. As a Mind Mover Apprentice, I was able to reimagine not just what science means to me, but also how I want to share it with other people. I learned that science communication is more of a social exercise than it is a logical one; it requires you to put yourself in the shoes of others, to embrace diversity, and to be present as someone listening and co-learning, not preaching.
Working for the Bonifacio Art Foundation, Inc. during a pandemic certainly entailed extraordinary circumstances. We needed to be more creative so that science can serve people, especially given the situation—an experience I am sure we shared with people all over the globe. Despite everything, science prevails: the fastest vaccines ever developed have been rolling out the past weeks. I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to work, but I also acknowledge that I was able to engage in science because I am privileged enough to have had access to the resources I needed. As such, I will continue to support the mission of The Mind Museum to make science more accessible for people.
In some ways, my time as a Mind Mover Intern allowed me to be a kid again. While crafting lesson plans for K-12 students, I was filled again with an inquisitive sense of wonder and joy that I hope others can feel too, no matter their age. My internship has shown me the importance for science to be local, and has challenged me to rethink my role as a Filipino scientist. I am inspired to share my love for my environmental advocacy through the language of art—a sister to science, and just as meaningful a way of communicating our place in the world.
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