Niamh shares her Antarctic Voyage with Ireland

Hello my dear GoFundMe peeps!

I’m Niamh (pronounced 'Neeve'), an Irish writer and science communicator with 2 degrees in Engineering and a PhD in Science and I care passionately about people, education and my planet.

The aim of my work is

Why Homeward Bound?

On November 11th myself and 72 other female scientists and engineers from across the globe will embark from Puerto Martyn in Argentina on a 3.5 week voyage to the Antarctic.

This is not a vacation.

We will be working and living together in cramped conditions, surviving extreme cold, rough seas and 12-15 hour working days. We’re on a mission for climate change as part of a global leadership programme for women led by Homeward Bound projects in Australia.

Why are we travelling to the Antarctic if it's a climate change mission? Because seeing firsthand the devastating impact of climate change on the Antarctic landscape has a profound and life-changing effect on those who witness it.

Homeward Bound has pledged to bring 1000 women in the sciences (aka Women in STEM) to this region, so that they step up and speak out about climate change. We have been working together online for over a year but on the voyage we will get to meet and work more intensively together. We aim to leave the boat in early December with a stronger commitment to the climate agenda and each armed with a personal strategy to lead the change in their home countries.

WHY IS THIS HOMEWARD BOUND EXPEDITION IMPORTANT:

I chose to be part of this mission because as a communicator of science and planetary space topics, a fellow of the Explorers Club and a ESA champion for space science education, I felt a responsibility to assist in making climate change easier to understand.

I participated in a simulated mission to Mars in 2017 and it changed the way I understood climate change.

The success of my work in the past has always been in sharing the human side of science through personal experiences of living in extremes, most recently a Mars analogue science assignment in the Kalahari desert of Botswana. I realised that living in the extremes gave me a new perspective on the valuable resources we have on our planet. Communicating what I learned has been a huge part of my work ever since. But I knew that I could do more if I was connected with the cohort of Homeward Bound Women in STEM.

Armed with firsthand experience of climate change at the Antarctic, I hope to bring the same human understanding of this complex topic when sharing my adventures with the Irish public.

IF YOU SEE IT THEN YOU FEEL IT:

With your help, I can become a better advocate for climate change and work closely with people in Ireland and abroad to find more effective ways of engaging with the topic on a personal and community level.

During the pandemic, I joined the sixth cohort of 100 women, as we began an extensive and challenging leadership programme to support women in science. The programme focussed on improving our clarity, confidence, shared vision and strategic capabilities. We will complete the final portion this November at the iconic and challenging landscape which is experiencing some of the most severe consequences of climate change. We voyage to the Antarctic to witness first-hand the implications of climate change on our planet.

I would appreciate any support that you can provide. Each woman has the responsibility to raise funds for their place on the voyage. For many, they have been supported by their employer. As a freelance science communicator and educator, my circumstances are somewhat different.

How You Can Support Me

I am required to raise €17,000, to cover some of these costs

Offerings I can provide for your kind donations:

COMBINING SPACE TOPICS WITH CLIMATE-ACTION

I've been fortunate to make several climate-action-related projects in Ireland, I've spoken about my Mars mission across the globe, connecting it always back to Earth and our reserves of resources.

Here's the first episode from an interactive climate action walk I created as part of Abbeyleix Creative Climate Action Project in 2020/2021.

MY STORY:

I didn't start out as a writer and sharer of science and space stories. I came from an average family in Ireland. And like many people, I struggled to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, and what I was passionate about (while still being able to pay my bills). I always loved learning facts and writing and meeting people from all around the world. It took me many years to permit myself to pursue a career in what I care about the most.

ABOUT MY SIMULATED MARS MISSION in the Utah desert, 2017

So to live as if you’re on Mars means that we suited up every time we left our living quarters (known as a habitat), which we did daily to collect soil and rock samples. And we brought with us our own limited rations of water and food. In a matter of days on my simulated Mars mission at the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah. I forgot about my old life on Earth. I started to monitor water in a whole new way. I got used to the loud motor that honked repeatedly every time we used water. To flush the toilet, or to fill a basin, or to water the plants. I got used to only having two pairs of trousers and four tops and that we were miles from anywhere or anyone.

Here's a link to some footage from my mission:

And when I came back to Earth and stepped back into my apartment, I saw it all in a completely new way: my wardrobe of clothes, the piles of towels, bed sheets, books, and cushions. And way too much space for one person. I had missed nor needed any of it.

By leaving Earth for just 15 days, I discovered a new-found appreciation for my planet. And a new focus to share my experiences in a deeply human and relatable way, so that people might understand and appreciate the new perspective that I had experienced.

I learned to change the way I saw myself,

I learned to change the story I told myself

HONOURING WOMEN OF SCIENCE FROM HISTORY

I'm slowly learning that with the right kind of attitude and perseverance, not only I but others, all these other people out there who doubt themselves with the right kind of motivation can achieve the impossible. What if I saw more Irish female scientists as a child? What if I saw them talking about our planet, or had ventured to space? Who could I have possibly been?

I've been reading up a lot lately about incredible Irish women who made significant contributions to science, women who have been erased from our history books: Annie Maunder, Agnes Clerke, Kathleen Lonsdale, Kay McNulty... so many women

So I'm setting out on this expedition to go to Antarctica, another extreme environment, much like my simulated Mars mission. I want to use this expedition to Antarctica as an opportunity to encourage other women throughout Ireland to go after their dreams, step out of the box, to believe in themselves. Because if they believe in themselves and they reach out and they accomplish the things that they believe they know they can do, then that benefits everyone in Ireland but also across the globe.