Well, that’s it, my first group of trainees on the Identification Trainers for the Future project have left the Natural History Museum and are now exploring where they go next!
After a very busy 12 months both working at the NHM and being trained by a whole host of experts from the Museum, the NBN and the Field Studies Council they now have a wealth of experience and knowledge that they can rely on and share with others. They have all had an exceptionally exciting (and busy!) time, but took some time out to reflect on the last 12 months before they left. You can see what they thought on their final blog for the Museum. Do also keep an eye out for some of the training resources and opportunities which will be coming up on our website as a result of the final projects from our trainees. The first has already been released – a multi-access key to common British grass families produced by Sally has recently been published on the FSC’s Tomorrows Biodiversity website .
As for what’s next for them, well Mike has already started his new job as Conservation Ecologist with the London Wildlife Trust (which we are all very excited about) and I am busy helping the others with applications and interviews as they continue looking for the right thing to take their careers forward. Personally, and although I may be slightly biased, I don’t think it will be long at all before they all get snapped up for their next new exciting opportunity.
Our second group of trainees started on the 1st March, after having been selected from a very competitive pool of applicants and a busy and exciting selection day, which was held back in December. We have been keeping them very busy so far helping them to explore the Museum and the wealth of opportunities that are going to be presented to them over the next few months. From this week though the real work starts as they will be helping us on some of our citizen science projects here in the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity before they then start heading off for their first species ID workshop in April. I will let them introduce themselves to you over the coming months as they start writing these posts for you, but for now, meet Joe Beale, Jaswinder Bopari, Krisztina Fekete, Nicola Lowndes and Sophie Trice (L-R in photo below).
Written by Steph West, Project Manager, Identification Trainers for the Future
