By Daisy Polowetzky '23
To the NEST+m Genealogy Club’s founder and president, Athina Ramphal ‘23, exploring diversity and identity, embracing challenges, and possessing curiosities are the keys to unlocking the heart of genealogy. With this in mind, Athina and Sofia Korostyshevsky, the club’s co-founder, organized their club’s first flagship event: Our IDEA: Gender and Genealogy.
“Our club’s ethos is IDEA, which stands for identity, diversity, exploration, and all-embracing,” said Ramphal. “We wanted to have an event to teach people about a path to genetic genealogy.” The Genealogy Club’s first event focused on how students can use identity to explore genealogy, the study of family history, and the tracing of lineages. The event featured world-renowned speakers, Dr. Brandon Ogbunu and Cece Moore, who allowed attendees to experience an all-things-genealogy Q and A. Although this event was conducted virtually due to COVID-19, it allowed genealogy lovers from across the globe to collaborate and share meaningful exchanges.
The opening speaker, Dr. Brandon Ogbunu, gave an impactful speech about how genealogy is more than just DNA and family trees. Genealogy, he explained, is an intersectional branch of science that shapes our perceptions of each other. Dr. Ogbunu, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale University, has performed extensive research involving the subjects of biology, population genetics, and epidemiology. Ramphal was inspired by Dr. Ogbunu to create her club after attending Finding Your Roots: The Seedlings, a Penn State summer camp instructed by Dr. Ogbunu. “He was such a great mentor during the program,” said Ramphal. “I knew he would be perfect for educating young people on genealogy.”
The second and final speaker of the event was CeCe Moore, a genetic genealogist. Moore is a superstar in the genealogy world. Known for her ABC TV program The Genetic Detective and her work with law enforcement agencies, Moore has cracked 50 cold-cases using DNA evidence. Moore’s event presentation focused on the “power of genealogy” and how you can create your career path in the field of genetic genealogy.
A key takeaway from Moore’s presentation was that there is no one way to find a job in genetics. Moore even admitted that she started her career pursuing musical theatre and never majored in a scientific field. She slowly grew a scientific following by creating a blog sharing her family trees. Moore is a prime example of how life changes are not something to be afraid of, as they only guide you on the right path.
If you would like to be a part of future events like this or explore genealogy, consider joining the Genealogy Club! Even during a pandemic, the club is running strong. Meetings are bi-weekly from 4:00 PM-5:00 PM, and members are notified of meetings through Instagram and Remind. For more information, visit https://www.nestmgenealogyclub.com/, or check out the club on Instagram (@nestmgenealogyclub).
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