Thesis Thursday – Jesus Solis

Jesus Solis is a Master of Science student at the University of Arizona (UA) in the department of Soil, Water, and Environmental Science. Prior to coming to the UA, Jesus studied at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree, in Geology. While at the UNLV, Jesus was able to work under the direction of Dr. Brenda Buck, where he looked at naturally occurring asbestos (NOA) minerals and human health as it relates to Clark County, Nevada. The work with NOA led Jesus to further pursue his education in hazardous materials and human health. Under the direction of Dr. Mónica Ramírez-Andreotta, Jesus works on inorganic compounds found in soil, water, and plant matter adjacent to hazardous waste site across Arizona. Jesus is also working on a literature review which looks at trends within citizen science research projects among historically underserved and underrepresented communities in hopes of characterizing the rationale for low ethnic minority participation in CS.

During his time at the UA Jesus has also been afforded the opportunity to work at the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium where he takes part in the Earth Science Discovery (ESD) and UA Fusion Camp programs. Since his commencement at the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium, Jesus has taken on the role of education facilitator for the ESD program, where he aids with Earth science education dissemination to students that may otherwise not have access to this information.

Alongside being fairly involved in on-campus activities, Jesus and colleague Dorsey Kaufmann have had the honor of being awarded the PLAYA artist in residency position for summer of 2018 in Summer Lake, Oregon. During their time in Summer Lake, Jesus and Dorsey will create visual displays which focus on violence and its effects on social, cultural, and environmental systems as they relate to current political happenings.