Steph Jagger and her mom, Sheila, took a camping road trip together in 2016 across the Rocky Mountains. So often, the purpose of a road trip, or spending time in the outdoors, is to get away from it all. But in this instance, Steph was driving towards something many of us might rather avoid: her mom had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia.

Ashley Adkins isn’t a scientist, she simply loves recreational caving and the opportunity it offers folks with non-science backgrounds to contribute to the ongoing documentation and understanding of underground ecosystems.