Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
My name is Abby Cooper and I live in Whistler, BC, Canada.
For a living, I specialize in working in remote snowy locations as a photographer and writer. I am passionate about education, mentorship, the outdoors and making every day “the best day ever.”
I think it is important to…
create an atmosphere around yourself where communication is open so that the people around you feel comfortable to voice concerns and as questions and you can do the same.
Every day I try to remind myself…
this whole life thing is about having fun and working towards leaving a legacy that will better the world – add things that aid to this, lessen the things that don’t.
Why did you join the Community Snow Observations program?
It was an easy yes to contribute to something much bigger than me. I’m passionate about being a “snow nerd.” Whether out with friends or on a photography assignment I take the snowpack very seriously and gather a lot of shareable information. It feels great to share this data with a project that can have such an impact on how we perceive our snowpack in the future.
What does the term Citizen Science mean to you?
Someone who is able to naturally contribute to a research project from their current skillset, passion and motivation. Sharing your patterns and abilities to collect data for the greater cause.
What is your experience/background in snow science?
I have my CAA Avalanche Operations L1. Previously I have taken AIRIE 1, 2 and pro as well as AST 1 and 2. I took my first AST course when I was 13 years old and haven’t stopped playing in the backcountry since – yikes that’s 16 years of backcountry! I have worked with guides, mentors, tail guided myself and clock over 100 days in the backcountry each season gaining experience while working as a photographer and writer.
Why should more people join Community Snow Observations this winter?
It’s something we’re already doing when we enter the backcountry to stay safe and gain observations for our self – it is easy to share it to contribute to a bigger project that will benefit our travel and information sharing systems in the future. It starts now and it can start with you! It’s amazing to help get something so big off the ground with minimal time to share your findings. The more information we gather the more useful information we’ll be able to receive down the road.
