Alexandria, VA – The American Geological Institute (AGI) is pleased to announce that the winners of the first "Life in the Field" Video and Photo Contest are Patricia A. Beddows of Northwestern University for her video "Yucatan Peninsula Geology" and Danita Brandt of Michigan State University for the photo "The Complete Field Geologist." Beddows' video captures the spirit of field work and academic benefits of field experience with footage from a university field trip to Mexico, while Brandt's photograph shows a classic example of a student outfitted with field gear.
AGI sponsored the "Life in the Field" contest as part of a wider effort to promote field work in the geosciences for current and prospective students. The submitted materials are being incorporated into an upcoming student outreach videos that highlights the rewarding experience of being a geoscientist. Submissions to this contest were to focus on field camp and trips, depict a day-in-the-life of a geoscientist or explain the joy of field work.
Finalist photos and videos have been posted on the AGI Workforce Program's GeoConnection Facebook fan page, http://www.facebook.com/geoconnection/. The finalist videos are also available on the GeoConnection YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/geoconnect/.
In addition to the winning video and photograph, you can also see other noteworthy submissions from finalists Katia Kontar of ANDRILL and Richard Dobson of Michigan Tech in the video category and Charles Greene from Cornell University and Natalie Bursztyn of Bakersfield College in the photo category.
The American Geological Institute is a nonprofit federation of 47 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 120,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.