Hello, my name is Silas Andrews, and I am a fourth-year student at Montana State University pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Physics – Interdisciplinary Climate Science with minors in Math and Computer Science. I participated in the Cycle the Rockies 2021 course with WRFI and loved the experience!

I grew up with a family that loves the outdoors. My father’s career had us move from place to place but we fell in love with Montana and settled in Great Falls by the time I finished high school. I have since spent almost four years hiking, mountain biking, camping, and rock climbing around Bozeman, Montana.

Early in 2020, a speaker from Utah visited MSU with a job description of “Climate Physicist.” It caught my attention and ended up being the reason I picked up a career interest in climate science and sustainability. Around the same time, I heard about the Wild Rockies Field Institute. The Cycle the Rockies course particularly interested me and over a year later my interest in that adventure became a reality.

The Cycle the Rockies field course experience was like nothing else I had ever done. We biked across Montana and talked to numerous people about aspects of energy systems and climate change. I thought the academic and field aspects would be really distracting but travelling around the space we were learning about was a fantastic way to learn. The experience was insightful, the newfound relationships meaningful, and I picked up skills that are immediately impactful in academics and in life. Before the trip, I had little idea of what I could do after college, but during the course I met several people who opened a lot of doors to what I’d like to do after I get my degree.

I had a really good experience with WRFI and could share stories for days. If you have any questions you are more than welcome to reach out!