This is an Ambassador project of the Sharing Circle participant Alizée Le Moigne formerly working at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, now at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique in Québec, Canada.

Photo by Olivia Rempel/GRID-Arendal.

In April, I have held a little seminar with about 15 researchers from my university (University of Zurich), from various fields like geography, biology and ecology. I organized it in combination with the experience of another postdoc, Hanneke van’t Veen that worked with local communities in Tanzania. She did crowdfunding to hold discussions about her results with the local communities. I presented the Sharing Circle goals and introduced terms that not everyone knew such as co-creation, systems of knowledge. I then shared what I learned about Sámi people and on the importance for them to reclaim their lands. Many people were interested and impressed in the restoration of the Näätämö river. I have also shared the very nice video and some of my thoughts that the Sharing Circle inspired me. After the presentation of Hanneke and her local collaborator Vincent Vyamana, we discussed for about 45 minutes about our role in making fairer research.

Following this event, we have issued a newsletter that recollected the discussions during the seminar that was sent to our bigger organization: the University Research Priority Program Global Change and Biodiversity, composed of researchers of various career stages and disciplines. Read the article about the event here.

Beside this, I am working with a friend on a paper that deals with the challenges associated with organizing fieldwork abroad. I am writing a section about collaboration with local/indigenous partners largely inspired by the Sharing Circle. I wanted to stress out that we can do things differently even as early career, as the Sharing Circle convinced me.