Madison Reporter

Isabelle “Izzy” Ross, a climate reporter for Grist and Interlochen Public Radio in Michigan, will visit the University of Wisconsin–Madison as this fall’s Sharon Dunwoody Science Journalist in Residence. From October 14 to 16, Ross will engage with students, meet researchers, and participate in a public talk during the Wisconsin Science Festival.

Ross will join other science communicators and researchers at the festival’s flash talk event, “Big Ideas for Busy People: Fields of Wonder,” on October 15 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Majestic Theater in Madison. The event is free and open to the public; doors open at 6:30 p.m.

"By sharing stories behind her reporting," Ross said, "she will discuss how she localizes climate issues for her audiences, reveals the effects of climate change in people’s own backyards, and applies a critical lens to proposed solutions."

Before joining Grist and Interlochen Public Radio, Ross was a reporter and news director for Alaska radio station KDLG. She has covered various climate topics including Alaskan fisheries, clean energy, community composting, and avian influenza outbreaks.

The UW–Madison Science Journalist in Residence program was founded in 1986 by journalism professor Sharon Dunwoody and Terry Devitt. It is hosted by the School of Journalism and Mass Communication along with the Office of Strategic Communication. The program has hosted national science writers nearly every semester including PBS Eons host Kallie Moore, author Ben Goldfarb, Radiolab host Latif Nasser, Scientific American editor-in-chief Laura Helmuth, and Pulitzer Prize winner Ed Yong.