Ep63: Being a Positive Role Model – Chris Jackson

November 12, 2018 in Season 4
Photograph of Chris Jackson.
Image credit: Chris Jackson
How do you be a positive role model to those around you, as you ascend the academic ranks? Professor Chris Jackson talks about his background and experiences, and how that influences his efforts to be a role model.

If you ever want any of your PhD students ... to follow you into academia, you’ve got to show them something which looks vaguely sustainable

Chris Jackson

Chris Jackson is an advocate for better research standards and professional practice in academia. He co-founded the earth science pre-print server EarthArXiv, campaigns to improve academic publishing, and even published his own promotional paperwork.

When we sat down, I was expecting to talk about all these things, including Chris’ recent media work, co-hosting a series called Expedition Volcano on the BBC (broadcast in the US as Volcano on the Brink on PBS) that saw him being lowered into an active volcano. But instead we ended up talking about something much more personal - Chris’ background, growing up in Derby in the Midlands, and how he feels deep responsibility (and positivity) towards being a good role model to both his direct students but also the world around him.

You can read the code of conduct for Chris’ lab here, as discussed in this episode.

You can follow Chris on Twitter @seis_matters, read his blog here, or find out more about his research here.

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