Public Lab Wiki documentation



2011-2012 Staff Job Descriptions

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Public Laboratory 2011-2012 Job Descriptions

Liz Barry (Salaried part-time) Director of Urban Environment External Responsibilities include positions as co-director of TreeKIT, adjunct assistant professor at Columbia University, part-time faculty at The New School (divisions: Social Engagement, Parsons Urban Design and Constructed Environments).

As Director of Urban Environment: 1) Develop new research areas linked with community partnerships related to built environments, urban watersheds, green infrastructure, etc. 2) Coordinate with PLOTS staff on university curriculum and partnerships (areas: GRM + remote sensing / urban ecology + up-close sensing / design / social experiments) 3) occasional project lead for contract/consulting work (i.e., UNICEF) 4) occasional co-author for articles

At Field Site: NYC/NJ 1) Grow the local Public Laboratory community through regular outings, public events, hack sessions. 2) Develop partnerships with existing activists, organizations, and researchers 3) Testing of fieldwork strategies and new tools 4) Set up and maintain a physical workspace where indoor / all-weather meetings can be held.

Leading working groups for: Thermal camera (with Sara, Stu, Jeff) community applications, material sourcing, compare existing DIY approaches and host hackathon with Jeff at p.irateship. PR (with Jeff, Stu) - website content generation, blog network outreach, public talks and videos

Member of working groups for: Fundraising (with everyone) - Identify new grants, manage grant deadlines and write. Kite/balloon design (with Mat, Stu) - test kite designs in NYC Infrared camera (with Stu, Jeff) test in NYC stereo camera (with mat, Leif) design housings, incorporate the extra controller / data logger that M/L invented 3D modeling (with Stu, Sara, Jeff) testing workflows for deriving point clouds, digital elevation models, open source version of photosynth (NASA). DIY Lidar. Sensing (with Sara, Mat, Leif) linking sensor feedback with design response Public Archive/ Online systems/ web infrastructure (with Stu, Jeff) staying informed


Shannon Dosemagen (Salaried full time) Director of Community Engagement, Education and Outreach Home Site: Gulf Coast

Outreach, Partnerships and Community Engagement 1) Develop and coordinate projects and partnerships at sites where PublicLab staff are not located. 2) Work with organizations and individuals on starting up new project sites. 3) Coordinate collaborations and research projects between communities/schools 4) Develop on-going site relationships 5) Coordinate community granting program 6) Write project proposals 7) Pre-project site research 8) Pre-project site outreach to participants 9) Pre-and-post project evaluation 10) Barnraisings, PublicLab conferences, events, workshops, presentations 11) Work with sites on co-authoring, culture of documentation and on posting materials to publiclaboratory.org

Education 1) Develop K-12 curriculum for tools 2) Develop workshop curriculum and field materials for use in association with tools in community organizations 3) Coordinate on university curriculum with other PublicLab staff

Administrative 1) Write PublicLab nonprofit papers 2) Budget and Accounting system 3) Grant writing, membership, general org. fundraising 4) Grassroots Forum shipping 5) BOD, lawyer, Knight, accounting correspondence 6) Acting president of Public Lab, sign on contracts and legal documents

Field Site: Gulf Coast 1) Coordinate Public Lab programming on Gulf Coast 2) Grassroots Mapping forum interviews 3) Develop partnerships with Gulf Coast organizations and researchers 4) Testing of fieldwork strategies and new tools

Evaluation/Outcomes 1) Data uptake by researchers, policy makers and local communities 2) Develop evaluation process for community sites 3) Develop case studies for each project site 4) Conduct interviews for evaluation (including SIP) 5) Quantification, gathering/assessment 6) Interpretation/analysis and publication of eval. results on website 7) Development of participatory approaches and co-authoring practices 8) Self-criticism, improvement 9) Develop goals and standards for outcomes with data from each tool (corresponds with community partnership role)

Research 1) Defining needs 2) Field testing and collaboration 3) Iterative process refinement 4) Blog/article/paper writing and conference participation 5) Collaborate on developing tools and working groups around health and extractive industries

Working Groups 1 Outreach - conferences, meet ups, barnraising, exhibitions - Sara, shannon, jeff mathew 2 Fundraising- Jeff, Shannon, Adam, Mathew (grant writing), sara (grant writing), Liz 4 Outcomes - outreach with existing data, legal/policy leverage, papers, exhibitions -Shannon, Sara, Adam 5 Evaluation, interviews- Shannon, Sara, Mathew 6. Budget- Shannon, Sara....everyone 7. GM Forum, printing - Mathew, Stu, jeff, shannon

Tool Working Groups 8 Roomba - Sara, Shannon (liz interested in air qual sensors for wide use)--Indoor air 9 water quality/endocrine disruption- Sara, Shannon, mathew, liz


Adam Griffith (Non-salaried part time) Director of Science and Coastal Research Site: Asheville, NC

As Director of Science and Coastal Environments: 1) Advise coastal research efforts 2) Author and coordinate research publications for coastal environments 3) Engage southeastern US region in PLOTS projects 4) Contribute to grant writing

Additional responsibilities: 1) Establish and maintain relationships with interested parties, non-profits, universities, K-12 schools, public school districts to carry out the PLOTS mission 2) Coordinate PLOTS sites: Asheville, NC; Western Carolina University; University of South Carolina - Beaufort - South and Southeastern US spinoffs

Leading working groups for: Retail (with Stewart, Jeff, Mathew): development, distribution, and presentation of kits;

Member of working groups for: Fundraising (with everyone) - Identify new grants, manage grant deadlines and maintain relationships with donors and potential donors. Outcomes - outreach with existing data, legal/policy leverage, papers, exhibitions -Shannon, Sara, Adam


Mathew Lippincott (Salaried part time) Director of Production and Production in Education Additional Responsibilities: Teaching “Science + Art” in PNCA’s Intermedia Department, Cloacina Project development. As Director of Production and Production in Education: 1) Coordinate the systems of production for tools and materials focusing on printing and how the production of tools can serve educational ends. Evaluating manufacturing costs vs. self-assembly and workshop costs, establishing rubrics for evaluating the cost-competitive nature of DIY tools given an wholistic view of their production. 2) Evaluate accessiblity of tools for community users in coordination with Shannon- how do our tools work across skill levels and digital “haves” vs. “have nots?” 3) develop production curricula and materials for tool making focusing on printing, instructions, and novel analog and digital production methods that are accessible to the broadest possible audience.

Additional responsibilities: 1) Assist in research and platform development coordinate the funding and integration of the SensorHub project for remote sensing into the PLOTS website, support tool development with curricular/workshop materials 2) Ongoing educational content creation and interaction coordinating with Shannon on K-12 materials, and with Shannon, Sara, and Adam to link our University curricula, specifically focusing on Sara’s work at RISD and mine at PNCA 3) Coordinate Butte site and community-based program work with local partners, focusing on redevelopment of the Centerville neighborhood, building connections with Montana Tech, and working to get PLOTS tools integrated into the primary and secondary educational curriculum.

Leading Tools: GRM: Kites and balloons- Mathew, Stu, Liz expand GM Guide to include specific kite and balloon plans for a specific wind conditions, processes for reproducing them, curriculum for learning techniques, and additional materials such as videos and other instructional media. By October, I will have in production a new edition of our GM Guide that includes kit materials and a full-range of flying machines for all practical wind conditions. Future work will focus on refining our documentation and positioning PLOTS as a key player in the resurgence of kite and balloon uses in science and industry.

Additional tool groups: water quality/endocrine disruption- Sara, Shannon, mathew, liz Identify testing needs in Butte area, coordinate the development of testing kits, getting kits integrated into educational programs in Butte, either in Montana Tech or the public school system.

Leading Working Groups: GM Forum - Mathew, Stu, jeff, shannon compile templates, and editorial guidelines for creating GM Forum and also distributing the format and process to partner communities, coordinate layout, printing, and assist in subscription management. GM Forum is not a monolithic publication, and by the end of its first year we will have a format and system for establishing and supporting local production at PLOTS research sites, connected to a national distribution network.

Additional Working Groups: Outreach - conferences, meet ups, barnraising, exhibitions - Sara, shannon, jeff mathew identify and invite technical specialists, coordinate tool sessions within my tool working groups

Retail - kits: Adam, Stewart, Jeff, Mathew focus on supplier relationships, kit creation, t-shirt and paraphernalia design

3 Fundraising- Jeff, Shannon, Adam, Mathew (grant writing), sara (grant writing), Liz grantwriting for all regions and foundation/funder identification focused on the Pacific NW

5 Evaluation, interviews- Shannon, Sara, Mathew do whatever Shannon tells me to, as well as coordinate interviews and questions for the GM Forum and related publications.


Stewart Long (Salaried full time) Director of Geography and Data Virtual Site: GRM projects, either online or in the field. Local Community Plan: TBD, see above. I have worked with K-8, but I think I am more likely to seek outreach to 9-12 or something more young adult/adult oriented. Virtual Community Plan: In addition to working on virtual projects. Working with new cartographers individually. Through any kind of appropriate/wanted mentor-ship or just to assist new people with how to work with the GMR tools and getting started publishing maps.

As Director of Geography and Data: 1) Steward of the PLOTS data archive. Archive librarian and development. 2) GIS Oversight. Technical assistance and exploration in Geography. 3) Map Production: Outreach (virtual site work on PLOTS mapping projects). 4) Map Production: Editorial & publication duties. Additional responsibilities: 1) Assist in research and platform development 2) Ongoing educational content creation and interaction 3) Coordinator TBD site and/or community based program Additional Stuff I'd Like To Do: 1) GRM road show. I want to literally travel around on the road in my truck and perform the GRM activities in new places with new people. The goal being spreading our IP and galvanizing new membership in our community.

Leading working groups for: Public Archive/Online Systems (with Jeff, Liz) - web infrastructure, maintenance, new features, backups, and development for PLOTS archive and web resources.

Member of working groups for: Retail (led by Adam) - price list compilation, instruction/guide preparation, online sales system management GM Forum, printing (led by Mathew) - development/coordination of new articles, creation of GM Logbook PR (led by Liz) - website content generation, Flickr and blog network outreach, public talks and YouTube videos Budget review (Led by Shannon) - everyone on staff is assisting here

Tools: GRM (led by Mathew) - Kite and balloon platform development, refinements, specialized hardware scenarios, and examining partnerships. Infrared camera (led by Jeff) - documentation, development, and establishing of goal-oriented partnerships Thermal camera (led by Liz) - documentation, development, and establishing of goal-oriented partnerships


Jeffrey Warren (Salaried fulltime) Director of Research Site: Somerville, MA

As Director of Research: 1) Explore new tool prototypes and feasibility 2) Develop and/or coordinate field testing, calibration and comparison to existing techniques 3) Develop and/or coordinate software for data analysis and publication 4) Author and coordinate research publications

Additional responsibilities: 1) NYC interview program lead/GM Forum lead 2) Coordinator for Somerville, MA and Lima, Peru 3) Open source legal and community development for software and hardware (eventually a mini working group?) Leading working groups for: Infrared camera (with Stu, Liz) - documentation, prototyping, and developing case studies for specific uses, development of goal-oriented partnerships Spectroscopy (with Sara) - documentation, prototyping, and developing case studies for specific uses, development of goal-oriented partnerships Fundraising (with everyone) - identify new grants, manage grant deadlines and coordinate with partner groups to co-author grants. Prioritization of grants and archiving/reuse of grant materials.

Member of working groups for: Outreach (led by Sara) - planning and organizing workshops and coordinating resulting documentation, coordinate PLOTS writing projects for external publications Retail (led by Adam) - price list compilation, instruction/guide preparation, online sales system management Public Archive/Online systems (led by Stu) - Maintenance, new features, backups, and development for PLOTS archive and web resources. GM Forum, printing (led by Mathew) - development/coordination of new articles, creation of GM Logbook PR (led by Liz) - website content generation, Flickr and blog network outreach, public talks and YouTube videos Thermal camera (led by Liz) - hardware prototyping and documentation to support camera development and use Budget review (weekly audits with Stu)


Sara Wylie (fulltime) Director of Toxics and Health additional commitments: Teaching Art/Lab at Rhode Island School of Design in the Digital + Media department.

FORMAL PLOTS ROLES: Working groups: 1 Outreach - conferences, meet ups, barnraising, exhibitions - Sara, shannon, jeff mathew 2 Fundraising- Jeff, Shannon, Adam, Mathew (grant writing), sara (grant writing), Liz 4 Outcomes - outreach with existing data, legal/policy leverage, papers, exhibitions -Shannon, Sara, Adam 5 Evaluation, interviews- Shannon, Sara, Mathew 6. Budget- Shannon, Sara....everyone Tool Working Groups: 7 Spectrometry - Jeff, Sara 8 Roomba - Sara, Shannon (liz interested in air qual sensors for wide use)--Indoor air 9 water quality/endocrine disruption- Sara, Shannon, mathew, liz 10 thermal camera - Liz or Stu, Jeff, Sara 11 Research and Development future projects - stereo camera for 3D, deriving point clouds, diy lidar (liz interested) stu, sara

Administrative: 1) Assist PublicLab nonprofit papers--officially “treasurer” 2) Budget and Accounting system--daily expenses review 3) Grant writing, fundraising 4) Berkman lawyers primary contact 5) co-ordinate Knight evaluation process

Location 2011-2012: Providence Rhode Island

My own research focus and statement of purpose: Toxics and Health research: Fulling my role as director of toxics I will form a collaborative working group on the issues centered in RISD. I see three overlapping areas of interest for PLOTS toxics and health work: chemicals pollutants-endocrine disruption--homes/industrial areas/water sources, Biological hazards-water borne disease, Air quality-Asthma--gas patch/refinerary communities/homes. For my personal research would like to focus on endocrine disruptors and attract researchers from Harvard, NYC, Brown and MIT to discuss this issue in particular. I also hope to further develop an indoor air-pollution focus in collaboration with Asthma files researchers at RPI and the roomba project as well as the spectrometer. In terms of general water quality testing, I hope to further understand Matt’s work in this area and work to bring Public lab together with one-earth designs researchers in Pittsburgh, Sense it in NYC and water canary. I would like to continue supporting tool development on indoor air-quality such as the roomba and spectrometry approaches, I would like us to purse at least 2 other speculative tools directed at health and toxics. I would like us to start 1 or 2 research sites focused on toxics.

Over this next year with public laboratory I aim to prototype home testing for endocrine disruptors by pursuing one project idea immediately that I think has legs: I intend to adapt home beer brewing equipment to grow estrogen sensitivity yeast strains which glow in the presence of estrogens so that public lab can begin testing water sources around the states for estrogencity.

RISD/Brown/Public Laboratory Research Group: The goal of this group will be to develop tools for public laboratory, novel means of interacting with/visualizing data generated by public lab and to develop local research sites. Tools development will focus on issues of Toxics from indoor air-quality to endocrine disruptors. I hope to attract researchers from Brown, Harvard and NYC into collaborative development of home testing for endocrine disruptors. I may try to find one student to support this work but this will be my research focus for the year. I intend to encourage the students to participate in existing projects or develop their own. We will have some kind of gallery show based on the research group’s work during the year.

Continuing field research: I also aim to further develop public labs work in gas patch communities in NY, PA, OH, TX, CO and NM this will involve working with ExtrAct, scholars and communities in this field--I may do a short speaking tour in the gas patch over the fall--I will also be preparing my dissertation manuscript for publication by Duke University.

I hope to help get a tar sands project up running as well in coordination with Shannon.

Anthropological/follow-up research: Working closely with Shannon (and anyone else whose interested), I aim to begin archiving and analyzing our research process and tool development work for social science academic press articles about us. I see 4S and AAA papers as a spring board for that work. I also see this as tying into our Knight evaluation process. By June I’d like Public Lab to have at least one academic paper in peer review.

Teaching: RISD Art/Lab Class: I intend to develop curriculum that crosses over between Art/Lab and Public Lab and use the class to cultivate student interest in the RISD research group and public lab. Matt and I will be sharing curriculum development and trying to foster collaboration between PNCA and RISD.

Plans for the future: Professional development: I hope that over this year I can find a university department that is really supportive of Public Lab that I could make into a more permanent academic home-base, either as a post doc or ideally on some kind of tenure track.

Personal development: I really want to know how to make stuff myself! I’m hoping that while in Providence I can take fab academy classes and learn some making basics. Shannon and I will team up on this.