The Food Systems Research Center is pleased to announce that Chris Donovan has joined the team as its new Data Scientist. His background is in conservation biology, and he has conducted botanical fieldwork and research throughout the West. Before coming to Vermont, he was working with The Nature Conservancy to develop sagebrush seed delivery methods and improve restoration outcomes. He came to ¶¶Òõ̽̽ in 2022 to pursue a M.S. in Community Development and Applied Economics, where he studied extreme weather events and pro-environmental behavior. Outside of the office, Chris enjoys playing fingerstyle guitar, hiking, running, dunking in the lake, or otherwise enjoying the outdoors.
What is your favorite thing about working for the Food Systems Research Center?
I love the breadth of work taking place at FSRC. This is a uniquely interconnected field that spans development, economics, ecology, culture, and values, to name just a few. I appreciate that FSRC addresses that diversity by design.
What is your favorite thing about living and working in Vermont?
Having access to the outdoors so close to town is pretty hard to beat. But I'm probably about as grateful to have a direct line to bulk maple syrup.
What is something about you people would be surprised to learn?
I'm weirdly fond of ice water. It doesn't even matter if it's warm out. It can be the dead of winter and I'll still be packing my bottle full of ice in the dark, frigid morning to get me through the day.
What TV show, band/artist, podcast, video game, book, and/or anything are you most obsessed with right now?
I've been listening to the Quantitude podcast a lot lately. On one hand, it's pretty technical. It covers all manner of quantitative methods and statistics, with an emphasis on structural equation modeling. But on the other, it's very silly, tangential, and entertaining. The hosts are also skilled educators that use metaphor and mnemonic devices to convey abstract ideas really effectively.
About the FSRC:
The ¶¶Òõ̽̽ Food Systems Research Center (FSRC) is the first USDA-funded research center to study the interconnectedness of all parts of a regional food system, from farm practices to food access. They work to uncover solutions to pressing issues through the lens of food and farming. As pioneers in USDA-funded research, the FSRC is at the forefront of discovering how what’s on our plate affects our society and the planet.