What does Jeremy Gill, Overnight Program Facilitator at The Field Museum in Chicago, IL, do incredibly well? Creating connections between local species in Illinois with global species around the world! Each day, his #1 job is to bring the magic of the museum to life from the sprawling prairies of Illinois to the wide expanse of the African savanna. Let’s take a peek into his WILD world at The Field Museum in Illinois!
Illinois: Window into the world’s WILD places
Illinois – it’s more than meets the eye. Illinois is our nation’s prairie state, but it far exceeds expansive grasslands. Illinois is a window into the world’s greatest natural places and the species that inhabit it. Growing up in Chicago, I’ve learned about animals, nature and the wonders of this Earth through many of the world’s greatest scientific and cultural institutions that call Chicago home. For this blog, I want to lay focus on a special place to me, The Field Museum.
The Field Museum of Chicago – Credit: Technologik Flickr.com
The Field Museum is an expansive building housing millions of natural history wonders and it is one of the most highly recognized scientific museums in the world. I have been fortunate enough to have been exposed to this amazing place by my mother as a child, all the way up to an employee of today. My role at the museum is Overnight Program Facilitator – a fancy way to say museum educator. I am responsible, with the help of others, to bring the magic of the museum to life!
On select Fridays throughout the year, we can welcome up to 900 guests from Chicago to sleep at the museum and learn through educational workshops. In my workshop, I transport guests to Africa’s savanna ecosystem. This workshop allows guests to track and identify savanna species, all while tying in the conservation programs associated with the museum. Having recently completed a trip to Kenya and Uganda for a graduate program, this is right up my alley.
It’s Jeremy’s job to make natural connections between Illinois and the world. Through the Africa savanna ecosystem exhibit, he helps draw connections between Illinois prairies (left) and African grasslands (right).
During this workshop, I encourage guests to ‘like’ my Facebook page WildlifeTODAY. This page highlights animals and conservation programs throughout the world and makes it easily accessible to all. I encourage you all to do the same.
African savanna photo taken by Jeremy while studying abroad. Through a trip to Kenya, he was able to link his work at The Field Museum and Illinois ecosystems with a larger, global context. Credit: Jeremy Gill
Next time you want to escape to new and exciting places, don’t look far and consider visiting Illinois.
Jeremy Gill – Overnight Program Facilitator, The Field Museum
A job that let’s you sleep over at The Field Museum … we’re in! Thanks for sharing a glimpse into your life with us, Jeremy, and for reminding us that our local, backyard ecosystems can be the launching point for making WILD connections around the world.
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