People of the Green Sahara

Bido

• I am 25 years old.
• I am originally from Pennsylvania/Virginia.

Lauren Conroy

• I now live in Chicago.
• What brings me to the expedition is the opportunity to experience field work for the first time.
• This will be my first time to Africa and my first time to Niger.
• When I am not on an expedition to Niger I am working as a researcher with Paul Sereno at the University of Chicago. I studied Biomedical Visualization in graduate school, and love combining science, technology, and art.
• I am most excited about being in the desert and experiencing a new country. My research project at UIC involved G1B11 and G3B8, two burials from Gobero, and I am really excited to actually be at the site that they came from.
• When I was a kid I spent a lot of time drawing pictures or running around in the woods exploring and building forts with my brothers.
• I also have a few posts on my personal blog where I talked about 3-d printing the skulls of G1B11 and G3B8.
• http://iwanttodrawyourbrains.com/?p=111
• http://iwanttodrawyourbrains.com/?p=1151
• http://iwanttodrawyourbrains.com/?p=1177

Joe Cottral

DIDIER DUTHEIL

Didier Dutheil

PETER FELIX HENNINGSEN

Peter Felix-Henningsen

• I am 62 years old
• I’m originally from a farm in Gammelbygaard, near Flensburg, Germany
• Now I live: in Giessen, Germany. It is a small town (75,000 people).
• I have been to Niger four times and to many times to Africa. I’ve been to Sudan, Chad, South Africa  10 times.
• When I am not part of an expedition, I’m: director of the Institute of Soil Science and Soil Conservation, researcher and teacher at the Justus Liebig University Giessen.
• I am most excited about my family, paleo-pedology, research in deserts.
  When I was a kid I loved: to search stone-age flint-tools on the fields of our farm in northern Germany, farm work together with my father, bird watching, my girl friend….
• I feel excited and proud to become a member of the Gobero team and to learn more interesting aspects of the Upper Pleistocene and Holocene past of the Sahara.

Erin Fitzgerald

• I am 30 years old.
• I’m originally from Joliet, IL. Now I live in Chicago.
• I have been to Niger once and to Africa once.
• When I am not part of an expedition, I’m working as an artist and preparator for Paul Sereno’s lab at the University of Chicago, learning and practicing medieval long-sword sword fighting, spending time with my boyfriend, hanging out with friends, family, and pets, watching movies, traveling, and making art at home.
• I am most excited about discovering things of an ancient world, where life was different from what it is today, and being of the first few people to see these remains since their loved ones said their goodbyes. I am also excited about traveling. Visiting new countries is something that I feel is enriching; being able to meet and experience cultures that are even different from our own. Thinking about it, excavating an ancient culture of a different culture than ours? There are so many things for us as people to learn about each other, and being able to be a part of this I feel is not only a privilege, but a great way to enlighten me in this thing we call life.
• When I was a kid I loved to: Draw dinosaurs, play with dinosaurs, going to go see dinosaurs, if it was something I was passionate about as a child, it was dinosaurs. Even as a kid I knew I wanted a career involving dinosaurs. I was always playing outside as a child, climbing trees and playing outside games with friends, riding my bike, traveling with my parents, I was rarely ever cooped up inside.
• I want to encourage students reading this to do what you love, and love what you do!  Follow your dreams! I tell this to people all the time. There is nothing more rewarding than experiencing things through passion and the enrichment that comes with it. When you find something you love, things will fall into place, and where it takes you is all up to you. This expedition is an incredibly opportunity for me, I am thankful to be a part of it.

Julia Frasier

• I am 25 years old.
• I am originally from Pittsburgh, PA.
• I now live: in Washington, DC (leaving in March to go into the Peace Corps in Senegal).
• I am eager to learn more about archaeology in the region before spending the next two years in West Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer.
• This will be my 1st time to Africa and my 1st time to Niger.
• When I am not on an expedition to Niger I am: writing, running, reading, and spending time with my friends, family, and my dog, Molly.
• I am most excited about the unexpected discoveries that happen on digs, and the overall adventure of camping in the Sahara.
• When I was a kid I loved putting on plays with my friends, and SpaghettiOs.

MIKE HETTWER

• What brings me to the expedition is: I have photographed the last six expeditions with Paul and will shoot about 20,000 photos on this one.
• This will be my 12th time to Africa and my sixth time to Niger.
• When I am not on an expedition to Niger I am: a serial entrepreneur, co-organizer of TEDxMidwest and photographer.
• I am most excited about: Trenching through the cemetery to see what might be below the surface. We can only see what is exposed on the surface now so there could be some great discoveries underneath. I am also excited about being on the expedition and living in the beautiful Sahara Desert again.
• When I was a kid I loved: science, archeology and inventing.

• I’m 22 years old.
• I’m originally from Chicago and I still live in Chicago.
• This is my first time traveling to Africa
• When I am not part of an expedition I am mentoring young ladies in grades 3-5 at a non-profit organization called Polished Pebbles and working with Project Exploration Board members !
• I am very excited about visiting Africa and studying the “Green Sahara” site with Gabe and Paul.
• This journey will be a pivotal point in my transition as a young leader and I can’t wait!

TIM LYMAN

• I only admit to being 39 years old.
• I’m originally from the North Side of Chicago and currently live in Chicago South Loop
• This will be my 6th time to Africa and third time to Niger
• When I am not on an expedition, I’m dreaming of being on an expedition.  Between that I work as a physician in Urgent Care.
• I am most excited about the science and adventure of the expedition, going through the time warp into primitive Africa, meeting new people and cultures including medical work with the local people.
• When I was a kid I loved to dig in the dirt and climb everything.

GABRIELLE LYON

• I am 39 years old.
• I’m originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico and I have been living in Chicago for 17 years.
• This will be my sixth time to Niger and my tenth time to Africa (I’ve also been to Morocco twice and South Africa twice.)
• When I am not on an expedition I’m working with Project Exploration and hatching ideas for how to make our education system more like a real-life expedition! I am also learning how to be a parent from my 7 year old and one year old. They’re great teachers!
• I am most excited about being back in the desert, being with our Tuareg friends, and being back at Gobero, imagining what these people’s lives and loves were like so many thousands of years ago.
• When I was a kid I loved wandering around outside looking for pottery fragments in New Mexico, finding fiddler crabs on Long Island and watching Voltron after school.

Hannah Moots

• I am 26 years old.
• I am originally from Nashville, Tennessee. I now live in Dallas, Texas
• When I was an undergraduate archaeology major working in Professor Paul Sereno’s fossil prep lab at the University of Chicago, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to take part in the 2006 expedition to Gobero. I’m back to help continue with the excavations and find out more about the people who lived here.
• This will be my 2nd time to Africa and my 2nd time to Niger.
  When I am not on an expedition to Niger I work as a educator at the Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas and sharing my enthusiasm for science with students of all ages in Texas. I teach about everything from archaeology to electricity and I love it!
• I am most excited about: Learning more about how the way of life at Gobero changed over time and how Holocene climate change affected the people living there.
• When I was a kid I loved water – the ocean, swimming pools, rain, puddles, any kind of water.

BRIAN NAGURSKI

NELS PETERSON

MATTHEW RICHIE

Matthew Richie

• I am 23 years old
• I’m originally from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. Now I live in Bethany, Oklahoma
• I have never been to Niger or Africa.
• When I am not part of an expedition, I’m an assistant producer for Lampstand Media, and married to my awesome wife Laura.
• I am most excited about traveling to a place I’ve never been before
• When I was a kid I loved to explore the woods behind my house.

Paul Sereno

NICOLAS VAN INGEN

• I am 27 years old
• Originally from Lisbon, Portugal. Now I live in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• I have been to Niger 0 times and to Africa 4 times.
• When I am not part of an expedition, I’m traveling the world shooting documentaries.
• I am most excited about the opportunity to capture the incredible story of an ancient culture and the explorers who are discovering and researching them.
• When I was a kid I loved to read and travel and play sports

DEREK WATSON

Derek Watson