OUTREACH
How I share my passion with the public
I have reached a broad audience by participating in these forms of media or my work is highlighted.
Public contributions
I am happy to give broad public lectures at universities and museums throughout the United States and has presented more than 20 professional talks across the nation about my work and the state of dinosaur paleontology. Furthermore, I have reached a national audience by helping design museum exhibits (e.g., Burke Museum, Field Museum) and participating in podcasts aired by National Public Radio (e.g., With Good Reason, Pulse of the Planet), and his work is often covered on other radio shows (e.g., Science Friday) and National Geographic.
Large public events: The Paleo Unwrapping Party
Our biggest and most far reaching event is the annual Paleo Unwrapping Party. At this unique event, volunteers from ages seven to 70 help unwrap and label fossils from the previous summer’s field expeditions. The Paleo Unwrapping Party has been a huge success and over 250 people have participated in the last two events. This event allows anybody to be one of the first people in the world to see fossils as they come out of the field and understand why studying the Earth’s history is important to the future.
Enriched experiences: Tuesday Night Lab night
The Paleontology Preparation Lab, where fossils from all over the world are cleaned and prepared for study, provides experiential learning activities for K-12 students, Virginia Tech undergraduate and graduate students, and local volunteers. Every Tuesday night for two hours, Dr. Nesbitt and Dr. Michelle Stocker hold Paleo Lab Night, an open lab where undergraduates from across campus, regardless of major, come to learn about vertebrate history and clean vertebrate fossils from around the world.
Local public events: Science festivals
The paleontology group has an active outreach program that contributes to major science fairs across the Virginia Tech campus. I have a leading role in organizing the paleontology group’s participation in the Virginia Tech Science Festival, the Museum of Geoscience’s Geofair, and other local events.
Outreach coverage, links to interviews, and other events
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“Paleo unwrapping party,” The Roanoke Times: https://www.roanoke.com/news/education/higher_education/virginia_tech/paleo-unpack-draws-scientists-both-young-and-young-at-heart/article_45990535-6712-5b3d-b0ee-b8750e084c20.html
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“Paleo lab outreach with students,” The Roanoke Times: https://www.roanoke.com/news/education/higher_education/virginia_tech/virginia-tech-students-dig-renovated-fossil-preparation-lab/article_8fbea0fd-31fc-5a27-a4ad-cd3984c6bd17.html
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“Tech professor delves into dinos,” The Burgs: https://www.roanoke.com/community/the_burgs/tech-professor-delves-into-dinos/article_c8296730-b063-11e3-95a3-001a4bcf6878.html
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Make-A-Wish Foundation, Arizona. Helped Glenn Geisheker get to Argentina to dig dinosaurs (no public link)
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American Museum of Natural History Shelf life series featuring Dr. Nesbitt’s research: https://www.amnh.org/explore/videos/(watch)/shelf-life/shelf-life-10-the-dinosaurs-of-ghost-ranch
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"People Behind the Science" podcast: http://www.peoplebehindthescience.com/dr-sterling-nesbitt/
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“With Good Reason” radio show: https://www.withgoodreasonradio.org/episode/the-giants-who-ruled-the-dinosaurs/
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“Pulse of the Planet” radio show: https://www.pulseplanet.com/monthlyfeature/featurestories.php?id=223
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Dinolougue interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IHpGa4m4Fc
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Ology - fossil game: https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology/paleontology/layers-of-time2