Polar Impact: Mentorship
Mentorship has an undeniable role in career success, in academia and beyond! Access to mentors equates to access to opportunities, to a bigger network, and to people who can explain the ‘hidden curriculum’ of the research world. We recognize that early career researchers from historically-minoritized groups face unique challenges, and the Polar Impact Mentorship Initiative aims to address those challenges by providing access to community, resources, workshops, and networking opportunities.
WHO?
The year-long pilot program consists of ten mentees who identify as racial or ethnic minorities in polar research and are currently in a graduate program or a postdoc that focuses on polar regions.
WHERE?
Mentors and Mentees are located all over the world, allowing for a wide and exciting range of backgrounds, perspectives, and expertise!
WHAT?
The year-long curriculum is broken down into themes (including “Well-being during a PhD/postdoc” and “Meaningful collaborations in science”) aimed to holistically support personal and professional development of participants. Mentees are exposed to different mentoring styles, including one-on-one and peer-peer, to help round out their mentorship networks and build lasting relationships. Additionally, mentees gain skills and resources through exclusive quarterly seminars that are tailored to fit the curriculum themes.
ORGANIZING TEAM: Alie Lepp, Jackie Goordial, Lisa Herbert