Alice Bradley, PhD

What’s the work that you do?

In classic Arctic fashion, I wear a lot of hats. I am a professor at Williams College, where I teach classes related to climate science, environmental observation, and the cryosphere. My research is in observing Arctic sea ice and how we can combine observations approaches (different satellite-based sensors, shore- and water-based in situ measurements, and community observations). I also work in coordinating observations through the Arctic Observing Summit and SAON. How can we design an Arctic Observing System that makes better use of the resources we have and be more responsive to the needs of Arctic communities?

What keeps you going?

I am deeply interested in the question of how we measure things, and that is what brought me in to polar science. From building instruments and developing remote sensing approaches to coordinating observations at international and cross-disciplinary scales, what we observe depends on how we go about observing it. Being able to indulge this curiosity and make observations and observing systems that can help communities is what motivates my work.

What’s your message to the world?

Doing things well takes time. Be patient, start building relationships and processes before you need them, and recognize that sometimes you’ll need to take two steps back in order to move forward.