COURTESY OF SYDNEY BRYANTNext month’s March for Science in Memphis, Tennessee, is not the first demonstration that student/activist Sydney Bryant has helped organize in her home city. But it will be the one most closely aligned with her career interests. Having begun her undergraduate studies in marine biology at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Bryant aspires to become a coral reef ecologist. “As a kid I used to watch Animal Planet all the time,” she told The Scientist. “It was just very fascinating to me.”
In the meantime, she has been organizing for social justice causes in her community.
The Scientist: How and why did you first become involved in organizing a satellite march?
Sydney Bryant: I want to show the people here in Memphis that [showing support for science] is very important. I first heard about the March for Science from one of my contemporaries in the activist community here in Memphis.
We have tons of lead in our water and soil. . . . A lot of people here don’t really know about it. And a way for us to tell a lot of people here in Memphis [about the issue] is the science march—to just bring awareness to some of the things going on, and teaching [citizens] ...
