Poetry Project

I’ve been thinking a lot about poetry and storytelling lately. Things I used to be better at. Driven to introspection by social-distancing and motivated to rekindle a writing practice, I’m going to start a poetry project.

All poems will be posted to my blog, and I will be attaching links to audio recordings of each as well, eventually.

The first poem was inspired by the writing and oratory skills of N. Scott Momaday, Ph.D. and a talk I recently heard at the 2020 Native Prairie Restoration/Reclamation Workshop & Transboundary Grasslands Partnership Workshop by Philip Brass. You can read it here: https://danielkinkablog.wordpress.com/2020/03/22/nearly-lost/

The Great Barrier Reef! A Virtual Field Trip.

Aimee Tallian and I went to school together at Utah State University and she is one of my dearest friends. She is trying to bring science to kids around the country and the globe. Please consider donating to her Kickstarter campaign: http://kck.st/2HAVRgh

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1988705003/the-great-barrier-reef-a-virtual-field-trip/widget/video.html

Our World of Wildlife is a science outreach program that aims to teach children basic ecology and biology concepts, engage them in scientific discovery, and foster environmental awareness and stewardship of our planet. Our plan is to create a series of educational, interactive videos, or ‘virtual field trips’, that target children (K-5) who do not have the ability or resources to explore science in an outdoor setting. The field trips will be free online for anyone who wants to participate!

The first field trip takes children to the Great Barrier Reef, where they will follow along as we examine the effects of rising ocean temperatures and human disturbance on coral health and marine habitat. Ideally, this program will be a long-running series of virtual field trips, each partnering with a different ecologist.

We received generous donations from Utah State University’s Ecology Center, Department of Watershed Sciences, and Office of Global Engagement to cover travel costs. We are launching a fundraising campaign to gather the funds needed to cover production expenses.

BE A PART OF THIS SCIENCE OUTREACH PROGRAM AND HELP US MEET OUR GOAL. CAN YOU MAKE A CONTRIBUTION TODAY? OUR DEADLINE IS APRIL 13, 2018.

Click on the link below to access our fundraising campaign through the Kickstarter platform. Please share this message with others who have an interest in science communication and education.

Dissertation: Defended

Here’s a link to the video of my successful PhD defense seminar. The dissertation is still being revised, per committee suggestions, but I’m a Doctor of Philosophy in Ecology now.

https://mpvideo.usu.edu/media/0_e57m1qwe

New Gig

I’m a little late reporting here, but I’m happy to announce that on January 15th I started a job with American Prairie Reserve as a Wildlife Restoration Manager, helping them restore wildlife to one of the most imperiled ecosystems on the planet. From black-footed-ferrets to bison, swift fox to sage grouse, and curlews to cougars, I’ll be spending a lot of time in the field and at coffee tables helping restore vibrant populations of wildlife to the largest nature reserve in the continental United States. Come see it for yourself sometime.

Photo by Scott Heidebrink

Hidden Wolves and Apathetic Bears: Effect of Livestock Guard Dogs on Carnivore Detectability

Here is the poster I am presenting today at the Ecological Society of America‘s conference in Portland, OR. Use the link below to download a PDF.

ESA17poster_DKinka

 

Guardian Dogs Make a Comeback in Mongolia?

Interesting article about Bankhar dogs in Mongolia by Tim Ferry:
Guardian Dogs Conserve Ecology of Mongolian Steppes

Photo from Mongolian Bankhar Dog Project

The Science of Beer

A clean, well-lit taproom just off the beaten path in Salt Lake City, UT. Behind the bar, the words “Uinta Brewing Co.” are carved neatly into the blonde-colored wood, just below the mountains that bare the same name. It’s early, but members of the American Homebrewers Association have gathered here to learn from each other how to improve their craft – the craft of making beer. I went there with a simple question: How do you make beer?

Listen to my latest feature for Utah Public Radio here: http://upr.org/post/science-beer

Getting the band back together

Me and the guys from my high school band, Bar*Code, just recorded a music video for our cover of Weezer’s Say It Ain’t So, all recorded and produced remotely from three different time zones.

Check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fanfon.ha%2Fvideos%2F10105289532356608%2F&show_text=0&width=560

How to live with coyotes

This new short film spotlights the challenges and hopes for living with coyotes with a nice nod to my boss, the coyote research facility, and, of course, guard dogs!

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/short-film-showcase/researching-how-to-live-with-coyotes

The film by Priya Shelly for National Geographic’s Short Film Showcase can also be found here.

New Guard Dog Research Poster

 

Poster presented at The Wildlife Society Annual Meeting in Raleigh, NC on October 18, 2016.

PDF Download –> LGDposter_DKinka_TWS16