Nathaniel Duncan Proctor
40 years of Adventure
Celebrating 40 years of Duncan
Celebrate Duncan by Supporting Students and ECPs!
Whether you know him, know of him, or wish you knew him, please read on about why supporting Economic Geology students and Early Career Professionals (ECPs) is a great way to celebrate Duncan surviving his adventurous first 40 years.
ndp40 SEG London Conference sponsorship and website is a surprise by his wife, Catherine, to honor his passion for helping secure the future of Economic Geology through support for our students and ECPs and continued learning for all Geologists.
Want to be convinced why it is important to have students on field trips? Check out below for a case study from Duncan's own student experience (and mine) on a 2006 Colorado School of Mines student field trip to Brasil.
Make his heart happy this year by supporting future Economic Geologists with a donation to SEG!
About Duncan: A native of western New York, Duncan graduated with a Geological Engineering degree from Colorado School of Mines in 2008. He has worked as a Geologist in Nevada and Democratic Republic of Congo and was part of both the Kamoa/Kakula and Makoko deposits discovery teams. As a passionate supporter of Economic Geology students, he cofounded the Early Career Professionals Committe and now employs that passion daily as the current SEG Education and Training Strategist. A gifted storyteller with plethora of stories from his travels around the world has made him a very popular dinner guest. He mountain bikes, he sails, he climbs, he loves palm trees, his favorite mineral is emerald. He holds many titles as grandson, son, nephew, brother, husband, but is most enthusiastic about being called "dad."
About that Dad thing... if you happened upon this page as a student or early career professional and wonder how a family with two geologists working rotations managed to have a family - Find Duncan (or the ndp40 representative aka his wife) at the SEG London conference or check out the page "The Messy Details." It isn't easy and we try to be forthcoming about the challenges.
Full disclosure: ndp40 is in no way related to SEG. Duncan, the inspiration for ndp40, is a SEG staff member. His amazing spouse is creator of this site. It is her way to celebrate Duncan and she gets to put baby photos of him online. She went on multiple SEG student field trips with Duncan but will respond "ew" if you suggest their time on those trips lead to their current family. That happened on its own many years later.
Support the future of Economic Geology
SEG has many worthy funds that deserve support. The link below takes you to their contribution pages. Not sure which one? The Discovery fund or the General Fund will support student participation!
You can print out the donation page, generate a non-member account, or send me a note and we will get it done!
Duncan's passionate support for students starts here
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
2006 Colorado School of Mines Field Trip to Brasil. A tour de force from Campinas to Brasilia, Niquelandia, and through Minas Gerais. The students enrolled in a semester long course ahead of the trip with each student researching and presenting on a deposit. During the trip, the student was responsible for collecting representative hand samples from their assigned deposit. Master and PhD students also had the opportunity to present their thesis research at UNICAMP.
The Group
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
The participants were a group of professors, industry professionals, graduate and undergraduate students from both Colorado School of Mines and UNICAMP. During the trip, the group was joined by geologists from Vale, the generous host of many of our mine excursions. This allowed an excellent mix of experience and expertise paired with student enthusiasm!
Where are they now?
Colorado School of Mines Student Field Trip to Brasil
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
17 years later, the group no longer contains students. Almost all the participants continue to have significant ties to Economic Geology as Researchers, Exploration Geologists, Chief Geologists, Vice Presidents of Exploration, Professors, Geologists for Government Agencies, and Consultants all over the globe for every size company.
Note: the photo above was taken in 2009, three years after the fieldtrip. Three of the original field trip students reunited again in Brasil. One was working as project geologist the Central African Copperbelt, one had gone to the darkside of oil and gas in Houston, and the other was working with the Geological Survey of Brasil. Lasting friendships and professional ties built over a few weeks as students together. Who do you consider a friend AND a colleague? Where did you meet them?
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
On this trip, we studied, we learned, we began to understand. However, it is moments as captured in the video above: outside a mine, away from the outcrop, hammers and hand lens set down that can lead to long-term collaboration for our science and careers.
A field trip offers the rare chance to learn about someone's research, interests, and also gain the familiarity with them to give them a call when your interests overlap - be it a few days or years later.
A successful career in Economic Geology is networking underpinned with technical expertise. We do not advance our science or our careers alone. How complex and interwoven is your network?
Who will the students of today be to you tomorrow?
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
How about some recent examples? What are other ways can you invest?
During a 2007 CSM field trip to South Africa and Namibia, we have the super cute moment two students engaged with two of the trip leaders' children.
You couldn't tell in 2007, but these students are the future cofounders of the Early Career Professionals Committee.
11 years later, one student would complete his PhD with the mother of these kids.
13 years later, the father of the children would hire the other student to be the Education and Training Specialist at SEG.
Time is a great equalizer. We don't even notice when it happens, but it does. Students become colleagues. Supporting students today isn't charity, it is an investment in your own future.
How about some recent examples? What are other ways can you invest?
Hard Rocks and Soft Skills: The importance of relationships to our science and careers.
How about some recent examples? What are other ways can you invest?
Check out some recent SEG Student Chapter field trip videos! Really want to be impressed (and realize you were never as talented as today's students?) Take a look at the Virtual Field Trip Contest submissions from SEG Student Chapters.
It is not easy navigating this industry as a student or ECP. Who helped you along the way? Share your experience, knowledge, and network with others by becoming a Mentor!