Gibson Blankenship

he/him
Forest Technician
Forest Biodiversity Team

How did you get here? What brought you to Tyson?

I had originally done the ForestGEO project in my undergrad at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. In fall 2022, my professor forwarded an email from Jonathan Myers to everyone that had worked at Trelease Woods, which is the name of the ForestGEO project out there. Working with him at Tyson sounded really exciting and really close to home, so I decided to apply for it. It's a six-month position. We're gonna finish up in November, which is weird. I think I’m gonna come to the realization that this isn't just a summer job because, before this, I've just been doing summer work. When August rolls around and the undergrads leave, the tone is gonna change.

What has surprised you about this summer?

I've got pretty limited experience with fieldwork. I've done a couple of jobs before this, but I just graduated from my undergrad. I remember asking a lot of questions on my first day and being pretty excited about the radical hospitality. I thought that was a really interesting idea, community-based ecology. This whole community is, I think, different than a lot of other groups for sure. There are happy hours and things like that in other places, but this just feels different.

What’s been an affirming moment in your work this summer?

We did a technician showcase, which was just a quick informal presentation of what we've done so far and how we got into this position. It was like reference times in your life. You kinda realize that you've done something and that you have something to present on. It was nice to then get a very genuine and very nice reaction from the undergraduate fellows, asking questions and those kinds of things.

How do you spend your time outside of Tyson?

Me and the other three technicians live together. We're living in Shaw, which is close to Tower Grove. I spend a lot of my time with them, going to places that are nearby. We've picked up pickleball. I’ve also been biking and traveling on weekends to see family.