About me
My name is Peter Jurich and I am an award-winning science writer and public speaker.
I am curious, analytical, empathetic, and I believe knowledge should be accessible to everyone regardless of education or ability. I have a Master’s degree in science communication with an emphasis on narrative storytelling from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. My work has taken me from neurology labs in Wisconsin to the Galápagos Islands in Ecuador.
While I consider myself a lifelong learner, I also strive to be a lifelong teacher using my passion for sharing the knowledge I’ve acquired. I've received formal recognition for my work as a university instructor and am well versed in creating content in multiple forms.
In my free time, I enjoy writing and acting in short films, performing stand-up comedy, biking around Madison, baking cookies, and woodworking.
Career highlights
- I won “Best Article” for Planet Forward's annual Storyfest competition. My article on dumpster diving had received a perfect score, with judges saying it is “one of the best examples I have seen of the sort of storytelling Planet Forward seeks to encourage.”
- I travelled to the Galápagos Islands with Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic. While I was there, I wrote a story about the islands’ invasive goat population, and learned a great deal about wildlife photography from a National Geographic photographer.
- I reported on a revolutionary new physical therapy lab that later reported to me, after my story ran, that they saw a 75% increase in volunteers. Thanks to their research, clinics around the world use the Portable Neuromodulation Stimulator (PoNS) to help neurology patients recover faster.
- I performed a 10-minute stand-up comedy set at the historic Second City in Chicago!
Awards
- Winner, Best Feature article,
Planet Forward Storyfest (2019)
- Runner-up, Best Feature article,
Planet Forward Storyfest (2018)
Affiliations
- National Association of Science Writers
Why scicomm?
I attribute my interest in science communication to three books: The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan, Stiff by Mary Roach, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. The combination of these three amazing works inspired me into a life of going down intellectual rabbit holes and sharing my findings with an audience greater than just myself or my inner circle.
As a science communicator - whether I'm doing it in print, on video, or on stage - I see myself as one who interprets relevant data so that individuals, companies, cities, and more can make decisions based on rigorous studies rather than gut feelings.
