What is your current role? Tell us a bit about your line of research
I am a graduate research intern at the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe), Nairobi, Kenya. At icipe, we study insects and other arthropods, the most abundant and diverse animals on the planet. Currently, I am a Bioinformatics graduate student and I study the evolutionary phylogenies and phylogeography of insects within Africa based on thousands of molecular data/meta-data retrieved from public data repositories.
What are you excited about in science communication?
I am an open science advocate and I have been involved in pieces of training and research about open science in my region. Working as part of a group we often conduct training to nurture open science and its principles among young African scientists. My key interest is to promote open scientific communication through preprint, open access publishing and post-print usage. This is particularly important in our region where most young researchers do not have resources to access closed access publications. Additionally, as a bioinformatician, I rely heavily on FAIR data access and sharing, thus the need to champion open data publishing alongside preprint submission.
Why did you choose to participate in the ASAPbio Fellows program?
I committed to growing my knowledge of preprints, learning about their history and role in science. As an open science enthusiast, this will improve my competence in championing the usage of preprints among fellow scientists. As a researcher, I will better exploit the power of preprints in advancing my career. Importantly, being part of the ASAPbio Community allows me to network with a group of well-experienced biologists in scientific communication.
Ask me about…
Why open science in Africa, in particular Kenya, is an urgent necessity and the crucial role preprints play in that. Also ask me about Africa, her diverse cultures and heritage, languages and wildlife.