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Overview
About Me
Hi I'm John! I'm an entomologist and the creator of the Philadelphia Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion. I am very passionate about educational engagement and the incorporation of art into all aspects of one's life. When I'm not working on the museum or other work-related projects, I like to explore the world around me! I love finding little hidden places in cities that other people don't appreciate...and yes this includes cute hole-in-the-wall cafes but also abandon buildings, old train tunnels, and humongous trees!
My background is in invasive species ecology and techniques for population monitoring. Always happy to chat about environmental issues :-) I also have a decent amount of experience in entrepreneurship and community organizing.
Right now I'm about a year into opening my first museum. It's been a wild last 12 months and I'm thankfully now finding more time to catch my breath and tromp tromp tromp around the world again!
Why I’m on Couchsurfing
Hm...ok so I know this is new profile but I've been couch surfing for a while with other friends and the people are always so interesting that we meet! Also of course it's always nice to save some money when you travel. And what better way to get to know a place than to have a conversation with someone who actually lives there? I like hosting too. It's just nice to have short, pleasant interactions with people from all over the world.
Music, Movies, and Books
I'm a big fan of the Lord of the Rings books...I also delighted in Ender's Game but hated that movie. I like to wake up with Madeleine Peyroux and go to sleep with Phantogram.
One Amazing Thing I’ve Done
I road tripped up the east coast of Australia for 3 weeks and couch surfed on a guys houseboat! We rented a camper van for the other time time there and turned it into our own mobile adventure-mobile It was incredible and we saw huge swarms of wild flying foxes and kangaroos...very wonderful place. I loved Iceland a lot but I have to say Australia takes the cake.
Teach, Learn, Share
Next time you find yourself watching a beetle crawl around, think about two things. First-when walking around, insects keep 3 legs at a time planted and move the others. They walk tri-pod to tri-pod (at least normally-anything about insects always has tons of exceptions) . I think that is very cool. The second is that a beetles wings are actually modified wings. They protect their other wings by tucking them under those wings (aka: the shell).
What I Can Share with Hosts
I am always interested to share a good meal and conversation. I am great at doing dishes and can make fresh pasta in the time it takes for the water to boil.
Countries I’ve Visited
Australia, Canada, England, Iceland, Ireland, Scotland
Countries I’ve Lived In
United States