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Women In Polar Science

Joy Buongiorno, PhD

University of Tennessee (USA)

Joy, in orange polar gear, stands on a Svalbard beach in front the Arctic Ocean. There's a small outboard motor inflatable boat behind her.

Joy, in orange polar gear, stands on a Svalbard beach in front the Arctic Ocean. There's a small outboard motor inflatable boat behind her.

What’s the work that you do?

I combine metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing analysis with geochemistry to understand how microbial communities in fjord sediments respond to environmental change.

What keeps you going?

I love the people that I work with! They are inspiring, brilliant, and hardworking. Working as part of diverse, cross-disciplinary teams allows me to expand my understanding of the systems I work in and see things in a more holistic way.

What’s your message to the world?

My personal philosophy in my work and in life generally is to live authentically and own my truth. What this looks like is bringing my whole self to any situation I am in, not shrinking or masking who I am to please others. My hope is that this encourages others to do the same.

Organisation: University of Tennessee (USA)

Nationality: United States of America United States of America

Disciplines:

Microbial ecology

Connect:    

LinkedIn
Website

We are grateful to The Ocean Foundation for acting as our fiscal sponsor in the US, the Curtis and Edith Munson Foundation for sponsoring this project, and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) for supporting us.