Include team interview post

blog/2026-04-28-team-interview/index.qmd

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+---
+title: '"Two things I’m proud of recently” and the paths to Openscapes: an interview with Stefanie Butland and Andy Teucher'
+# description: "Subtitle"
+author:
+  - name: Ronny A. Hernández Mora
+    orcid: 0000-0001-6225-7096
+date: 2026-04-28
+citation: 
+  url: https://openscapes.org/news/2026-04-28-team-interview/
+categories: [blog, nasa-framework, noaa-fisheries]
+image: team.png
+bibliography: references.bib
+---
+
+*I’m Ronny A. Hernández Mora, the newest member of the Openscapes Core Team.
+Starting this position at Openscapes has given me the opportunity to get to know
+my colleagues Stefanie Butland and Andy Teucher more closely. I was in charge of
+conducting an interview with them (something I had never done before) so I’ll
+admit I was a bit worried. Fortunately, Stef and Andy made it easy by sharing
+tons of interesting stories and insights from their careers.*
+
+*This conversation is my attempt to learn and share what keeps them excited about
+their work at Openscapes. We discussed their recent work, including “tell me two
+things you’re proud of”, as well as their career paths, and what drives them.*
+
+*cross-posted at [openscapes.org/blog](https://openscapes.org/blog), [nasa-openscapes.github.io/news](https://nasa-openscapes.github.io/news), [nmfs-openscapes.github.io/blog](nmfs-openscapes.github.io/blog)*.
+
+------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+::: {style="text-align:center;"}
+![*Zoomies of Stefanie Butland, Andy Teucher, and Ronny Hernandez Mora during the interview.*](team.png){fig-align="center" fig-alt="3 screenshots of zoom participants. People are smiling."}
+:::
+
+## “Two things I’m proud of”
+
+As of January 2026, Stef has co-led 19 Openscapes Champions cohorts, including 3
+concurrent cohorts for NOAA Fisheries that just completed ([blog
+post](https://openscapes.org/blog/2026-02-26-nmfs-champions-2025/)). During this
+experience, one thing struck her: seeing open science practices really become a
+movement inside NOAA Fisheries\! Part of the work Stef does is support the [NOAA
+Fisheries Openscapes Mentors
+community](https://nmfs-openscapes.github.io/mentors/). This means leading
+coworking in groups and 1:1, facilitation, communication, building tech
+infrastructure, and helping individuals recognize how important and powerful
+their unique skills and experiences are – something that she is the most proud
+about.
+
+She also openly documents ***how*** **we work** in the Openscapes [Approach
+Guide](https://openscapes.github.io/approach-guide/) – including example emails
+– so processes can be reused. Currently part of this work is to document
+strategies and infrastructure for engaging with new groups for our Champions
+program, based on a first-time cohort for scientists affiliated with the
+European Space Agency. And, something that I much appreciate, is her time and
+effort to onboard me as we set up a first-time [Champions cohort for NASA
+Suborbital scientists](https://openscapes.org/blog/2026-03-03-suborbital/) with
+a short turnaround time. 
+
+Andy has been involved in coordinating and supporting workshops run by both NASA
+and NOAA Mentors. They use JupyterHubs that we host in partnership with
+[2i2c](https://2i2c.org/), so participants have a common computing environment
+set up and ready to go. Andy created
+[openscapes.cloud](https://openscapes.cloud/) to pull together all of the
+documentation for setting up and running a workshop using one of these Hubs, and
+is currently working on making the process of requesting and setting up the Hub
+for a workshop more efficient, through the use of [issue
+templates](https://github.com/NASA-Openscapes/workshop-planning/issues/new?template=01-nasa-openscapes-workshop-template-form.yml)
+and Google Sheets.
+
+Andy has created [tools](https://github.com/Openscapes/jupycost) and
+infrastructure for [cost monitoring and
+reporting](https://openscapes.cloud/usage-reporting.html), and worked with 2i2c
+to help create and test internal monitoring tools using Grafana. These tools
+help to understand and report on who is using the Hubs, what kinds of resources
+they are using, and how much it costs. For him it’s really gratifying working on
+these projects with the amazing folks at 2i2c (Yuvi, Jenny Wong, April Johnson,
+Angus Hollands) as well as the NASA and NOAA Mentors who lead events to teach
+their peers, and also test and communicate back their needs. One fun technical
+thing he did recently was to figure out a streamlined process and document [how
+to SSH into the Hub](https://openscapes.cloud/ssh-into-hub.html).
+
+Another part of Andy’s work that he finds especially gratifying is running the
+“[Data Academy”](https://nmfs-openscapes.github.io/data-academy) for NOAA
+fisheries staff learning R. Scientists sign up for a learning cohort, and follow
+a customized curriculum on [dataquest.io](http://dataquest.io), with Andy
+guiding them through the process. He hosts a weekly help desk where he
+demonstrates that week’s lessons or a special topic, and provides a space for
+Q\&A and/or quiet coworking. The format is in continuous change based on what
+works best for learners. For example, sessions are recorded for those who cannot
+attend live, and there are “break weeks” so participants can catch up. Stef has
+been instrumental in refining the structure as they iterate together.
+
+## Paths to Openscapes
+
+Both Stef and Andy began their career in the life sciences. Stef obtained her
+master’s in biology, specifically fruit fly behavior genetics, in 1993 from York
+University in Toronto, Canada. Andy did his master’s in ecology at the
+University of Calgary, graduating in 2006\. From there, they move in a different
+direction but with some common points that I found interesting (open science,
+workflows, etc.) 
+
+Stef decided to move to Vancouver, without a clear idea of what to do with her
+career at a later stage, so she took a job as a lab bench molecular biologist
+research assistant, for which she already had the skills. Despite thinking
+initially that it was going to be for one year, it ended up being five years.
+This didn’t happen just because. It had to do with the team culture she found
+there, the supervisor and the growth mindset they had. As she shared her story,
+Stef mentioned that during her career there were some “watershed moments”
+(highly influential moments in her career), such as one where a lab member
+installed an early web browser in the lab computers. This was around 1995-1997,
+so having a connection to the Internet meant access to  free public databases of
+DNA sequences from which you could infer and compare protein, amino acid
+sequences.
+
+This moment marked Stef’s transition into bioinformatics and her first exposure
+to what we now think of as open science and freely accessible data and tools.
+What I like about Stef's story is that her curiosity and passion didn’t stay
+confined to technical work, but in parallel she was also building community
+through initiatives like co-founding the Vancouver Bioinformatics Users Group \-
+[VanBUG](https://www.vanbug.org/) in 2002, and sharing what she was learning. 
+
+The connections made through those experiences were important. She got to know
+Jenny Bryan, who at the time was  part of the [rOpenSci](https://ropensci.org/)
+leadership advisory group. Jenny eventually sent her the job description for a
+Community Manager role at rOpenSci, telling her, “I think this job description
+is you.” And this is how Stef started at rOpenSci in September of 2016\. Stef
+described this as something she is particularly proud of. 
+
+Stef describes her time at rOpenSci as another watershed moment in her career.
+She stepped into a role that didn’t exist yet, which she helped to define, with
+an initial focus on organizing the [2017
+unconf](https://ropensci.org/blog/2017/06/02/unconf2017/). Having that clear
+focus, and the space to grow into the role, everything else began to fall into
+place from there. During her time at rOpenSci, and specifically at the
+conference, she met Julie and Andy, which later would become important as a next
+step in her career. After nearly six years working with rOpenSci, she felt the
+role needed a new person who could bring other skills, so she decided to step
+away and resigned from that position proactively. 
+
+After leaving rOpenSci, Stef took the time to reflect on what she wanted her
+work to feel like and recognized that Openscapes was a place which aligned with
+what she was looking for. The timing was good – she was able to join the team in
+April 2022, initially a few hours a week, and gradually expanding over time. 
+
+This, in many ways, tells that not always a linear path exists, and instead
+there are watershed moments (as Stef likes to say) that can lead us to new and
+exciting opportunities. Especially driven by the people you work and connect
+with. Also, for Stef, having a science background is key to feel on a level with
+the people she works with and teaches.  
+
+Andy’s path into Openscapes was shaped initially by his work in the government
+of British Columbia. He started with species conservation assessments, which led
+him to start using R to automate and make processes more efficient. He made his
+way through various parts of the BC government, inside the Ministry of
+Environment, and then also in BC Stats, the statistical agency.
+
+It was through that work that Andy began to develop and promote practices for
+open science by using open data, open source software, reproducibility,  and
+also, publishing the code. This was super important for trust of government
+organizations and also efficiency for scientists getting things done. On this
+end, Andy highlighted the role of collaborators like Stephanie Hazlitt and Sam
+Albers, who were a big part of that journey. He later joined
+[Posit](https://posit.co/) as a package developer educator on the tidyverse
+team, which he described as a dream job. During his time at Posit he had the
+chance to work and learn from people like Jenny Byran and Tracy Teal. That
+experience was unexpectedly short-lived, however Andy still gained a lot from
+his time there, building good relationships and learning a lot, especially about
+the way the tidyverse team works to be productive, inclusive, and
+community-focused. Up to this point in his career, much of the Openscapes ethos
+was already starting to take shape in his work.
+
+After Posit, Andy started to work on his own as a consultant, something that he
+had previously considered but never done. Around that time, he reconnected with
+Julie, whom he had first met through the rOpenSci community and later again at
+posit::conf(2023). When Openscapes advertised for a cloud team member, it
+sounded like an amazing opportunity, so he applied and was offered the job in
+spring of 2024\. The combination of fun and challenging technical work, some
+teaching, and collaboration with amazing scientists through open science
+practices has been incredibly rewarding for him.
+
+## Learning and Skills
+
+Something Andy and Stef both emphasized was the importance of continual learning
+and skill-building throughout their paths. And this is something they continue
+to do and role-model at Openscapes. 
+
+When talking about learning and skills, Stef mentioned something that is easy to
+overlook: the role of creating relationships. For her, community building isn’t
+separate from the technical work, it’s actually what makes it possible. Much of
+the effort on maintaining connections between people, or shaping the processes
+that support the group of people working on it, has a lot of impact on the
+success of a project. What stands out in Stef’s approach, is her ability to
+connect layers: understanding tools well enough to use them effectively, while
+also creating the conditions for the people to engage with them. She is capable
+of translating between the technical and the human side of workflows, making
+them work much better.
+
+One of the main characteristics in this process is the ongoing learning process.
+It’s an iterative process, practical, embedded in Openscapes ethos. For example,
+the [Openscapes Reflections program](https://openscapes.github.io/booklet/)
+helps people think through and identify what feels clunky in a workflow, and
+leads to actions to improve it. Learning becomes practical by reducing friction
+and improving by small continuous changes.
+
+“Confidence in yourself and constant learning” – that’s the message I take from
+Andy. For him, it is not about knowing everything upfront, but knowing that you
+always have something more to learn, and trusting that you can figure things out
+when needed. Knowing that you can put in the effort to find answers, to solve
+problems is an important skill.  This aligns closely with Openscapes [growth
+mindset](https://openscapes.github.io/approach-guide/approach/#growth-mindset),
+which helps to keep him engaged, to feel challenged, because motivation can drop
+when you stop learning. Beyond the technical skills such as expanding the
+background in R to Python and cloud workflows, he has been learning about
+developing more intentional community and communication skills.
+
+## Closing
+
+*I’ve always been curious about the paths people I admire have taken: the
+decisions, opportunities, encounters, and moments that led them to where they
+are today. It is always amazing to hear their stories, and how non-linear a
+career path could be. I also like how people navigate moments of uncertainty,
+how they recall those stages that shaped them, and what motivates them along the
+way.* 
+
+*As I start this new [role with Openscapes and the NASA-suborbital
+team](https://openscapes.org/blog/2026-03-03-suborbital/), I’m excited to work
+with Stef and Andy, learn from them while bringing my expertise, experience,
+questions, and ideas to the group. Who am I? I’m a researcher and a software
+developer at the intersection of perception-driven systems, computer vision,
+deep learning, and remote sensing. Over the past eight years, I’ve worked with
+people in academia and industry to adopt collaborative, open, and maintainable
+workflows in real-world contexts. I look forward to contributing to the
+Openscapes community\!* 
+

blog/2026-04-28-team-interview/references.bib

@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+
+@article{robinson2022,
+	title = {The Openscapes Flywheel: A framework for managers to facilitate and scale inclusive Open science practices},
+	author = {Robinson, Erin and Lowndes, Julia S. Stewart},
+	year = {2022},
+	month = {10},
+	date = {2022-10-10},
+	doi = {https://doi.org/10.31223/X5CQ02},
+	url = {https://eartharxiv.org/repository/view/4560/},
+	note = {Publisher: EarthArXiv},
+	langid = {en}
+}