Students on a Floating Rock 006: Art as Science Communication

On today’s episode we have Aysha McConkey, a Bachelor of Environmental Studies graduate, junior biologist, and wildlife artist. She’s joining us today to talk about the importance of co-op placements during her academic journey, various types of local wildlife conservation efforts, and the synergy between art and science to mobilize knowledge.

Learn more about Aysha’s projects at her website and follow her on Instagram at @AyshaMcConkeyArt.

Please note, this episode was recorded in summer 2025 and so minor details may have changed since the time of recording.

Students on a Floating Rock is available to stream on your favourite podcast services — including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music/Audible, and more.

Powered by RedCircle

TRANSCRIPT

Students on a Floating Rock voice-over 0:00
From UFV’s changemaking hub, this is Students on a Floating Rock, a student-run podcast dedicated to—

Regan Smith 0:07
—um, I actually think I can take it from here.

Students on a Floating Rock voice-over 0:10
Umm, okay.

Regan Smith 0:11
So if I had to describe it, then it’s basically engaging with changemakers to learn about the skills and mindsets needed to navigate these horrific times on this floating rock, also known as Earth.

Regan Smith 0:21
On today’s episode, we have Aysha McConkey, an environmental studies graduate, amazing artist, Student Co-op Of The Year recipient, and a soon to be registered biologist. Truly astounding work. She’s joining us today to talk about the intersections between her creative and academic interests.

Regan Smith 0:42
Okay, I have a special guest with me here today, and I would love it if you could introduce yourself.

Aysha McConkey 0:49
Hi, my name is Aysha McConkey. I’m a junior biologist currently working with Titus Biological Services. I recently graduated at the University of the Fraser Valley last fall in 2024 and technically, did my, you know, whole thing in 2025 but regardless, that’s my official. And now I’m also currently a wildlife artist that is doing murals all over the Fraser Valley, including like in the city, like Richmond and Vancouver area, and using my art as a means of science communication to educate the public about species at risk and other environmental issues we’re facing in our generation.

Regan Smith 1:25
I’ll start off with our icebreaker, though. So in one of the articles I was reading as I was looking at what you did, you mentioned Steve Irwin and the Kratt brothers, for anyone who doesn’t know, that’s Zoboomafoo, which I had to look that up just to double check I knew what it was, so you mentioned them as inspiration. If you could create a children’s show, what would it be?

Aysha McConkey 1:46
Yeah, I mean, growing up, I idolized the Kratt brothers and a bunch of like, nature documentaries. That’s literally all I watched as a kid. So if I had the power and the money to make my own kids show, I would really want to use animation to create a full length animated TV series based on like an animal of the week, where we would focus on like human main characters. And you know, through the power of science and magic, they can transport into these animals to see what they’re like in their own lives, what they face in a daily basis, and you know, a human in an urban environment, or any environmental issues they may be facing, and what makes them so unique, and why we need to protect them.

Aysha McConkey 2:27
But also, like adding humor into it, because I always love to laugh, right? Like, for example, say, like kid characters like, “oh, man, it’s raining all the time. This sucks. Like, I want to go outside and play” and then, like the main characters like, “oh, let’s go see what the poisonous dart frog in South America doing,” and it’s like raining all the time, like they’re just trying to avoid being preyed upon. And then you realize, oh, wait, but look how cool they are. This is like their defense mechanism against predation, kind of stuff like that.

Regan Smith 2:54
Oh, my God, that sounds so cool.

Aysha McConkey 2:55
Yeah.

Regan Smith 2:56
When I was thinking of my answer, my my answer might not be as great as yours. I was thinking of—usually what I do, I love to do, so I grab, like, The Cascade, so the UFV newspaper, and I read everybody’s horoscope to them, because I think it’s so funny. So just be like a children’s show, which is this one kid who’s, like, this horoscope sort of person, and she has, like, just on the playground with some tarot cards, you know, reading people’s horoscope and what their future might hold for them.

Aysha McConkey 3:24
Yeah, a little, a little fun fact. I’ll just jump in there too, about like, animation and how it can influence with biology. The creator of SpongeBob was originally a marine biologist, so he wasn’t even an animator. He was a researcher, and then he just completely changed career paths, but used his knowledge in marine biology to create the whole world of like the SpongeBob universe. So just a little fun fact about that.

Regan Smith 3:27
I had no idea about that.

Aysha McConkey 3:37
Exactly, biology is so influential.

Regan Smith 3:48
So one of the reasons I asked you, well, I guess the first reason how it started is because you had an article and you got the UFV Co-op award, Co-op Student of the Year award. Could you give us a little spark note version of where your co-op placement was and what you did there?

Aysha McConkey 4:05
Yeah. So I actually was in two co-op placements, like two different jobs. So the first one I got in with the co-op was with the Fraser Valley Conservancy, and I was a summer crew conservation worker. And it was an amazing, amazing experience, getting to work with, like, a huge variety of different species that are at risk and being protected under, like, the municipal government here in BC. So like, for example, I worked with barn owls, I worked with the western toad, I worked with the Oregon forest snail. I worked with, like, just a bunch of different like, amphibian and bird species, and even plants too, like a lot of invasive plant removal.

Aysha McConkey 4:39
And then my second co-op placement with was with the Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada. That was insane. That was like a research internship, and I was able to conduct my own research project that eventually got published, and I helped with a bunch of other projects from PhD and Masters students that were kind of like my supervisors slash like, like, they really inspired me to like, know where I’m going now in life. And that was probably my most serious co-op job. And it’s like, it really made me realize what it is to be like a research biologist, and that was in the world of entomology too. So yeah, there’s, there’s bunch to say on both of them. So if you have any questions, I’d love to answer.

Regan Smith 5:16
Yeah, I do have one question. So you were saying that you worked with all these different species?

Aysha McConkey 5:21
Yeah.

Regan Smith 5:22
I guess, what does that kind of mean?

Aysha McConkey 5:24
With the Fraser Valley Conservancy, they have many different projects, and in those projects they, you know, one of is it’s protecting or like monitoring the barn owl population here in the Fraser Valley. Another one was monitoring owl calls at night to look for, like the western screech. So some days I’d be working from home and going, going over audio files and then looking for the exact pattern that is recognized as the western screech, which is really fun.

Aysha McConkey 5:50
There were some crazy moments. Like, because these recordings go from, I think it was like 8pm all the way to like 5/6am and you just hear the craziest stuff. Like, also, like people who are camping and hiking in the middle of the night and they don’t know they’re being recorded, or just you hear, like, just the craziest animal calls, right?

Aysha McConkey 6:08
And then another one was working with the western toad migration out in Ryder Lake. We had the responsibility to make sure that we were monitoring the population and how successful they were crossing the roadways, because obviously there’s a lot of traffic, and we were trying to educate the community and let them know that the migration was happening, and then also monitoring a new culvert that was built to—it was like an underpass bridge, so that the frogs could go under the road, rather than over the road. And we were counting to see how many frogs were actually using that, the underpass.

Regan Smith 6:40
Oh, wow, yeah, I learned about the frog thing, actually, in one of my environmental studies with Stefania [Pizzirani].

Aysha McConkey 6:45
Oh, I love her. Yeah. Shout out to Stefania.

Regan Smith 6:47
But yeah, she showed us a little slideshow about that. And I was like, Oh, that’s really cool. And I had no idea that was happening.

Aysha McConkey 6:52
Yeah, it goes every year, and you can volunteer. So if any students listening, if you want to get involved with the Ryder Lake community project, they’re always looking for volunteers. So go to the Fraser Valley Conservancy website and apply. It’s amazing. I highly recommend it.

Regan Smith 7:05
Yeah. And I guess also, for some of your conservation jobs, the ones that you mentioned, I guess a lot of you talked about, was monitoring. Is there ever, like, I guess, preventions, or, I don’t know, some way to preserve the species that you work on as well, like, strategies.

Aysha McConkey 7:19
Yeah. So a lot of it too, like with monitoring, it’s understanding their population dynamics. So we can’t really stop cars from going, but we can understand how many fatalities can cause due to, you know, road collisions with those frogs, and better understand their route and how—what we can do to prevent that. But also, like building barn owl houses, boxes too, so they create habitat like the Fraser Valley Conservation is really big on creating more habitat for a bunch of species, right? Just ecosystem restoration in general. So like, removal of invasive plants that take over a wetland, like the yellow flag iris, we did a bunch of removal of those plants because they destroy wetlands. So that’s just one of the aspects of like, habitat restoration that I got to be a part of.

Regan Smith 8:02
Oh, yeah, that’s really cool.

Aysha McConkey 8:03
Yeah.

Regan Smith 8:04
So through the co-op experiences that you mentioned, especially how you’re saying, how entomology, one that you’re working with, like PhD students, and it really, I guess, gave you a lot of an direction, yeah? So I guess, could you tell us more about that? Like, what was your big takeaway from being in that kind of environment.

Aysha McConkey 8:22
My biggest takeaway is, when I entered that building, it is so different from a classroom environment and what they teach you like, it was like, here’s the real world of it all. And you know, we do get taught in like classrooms about, you know, creating a research project, developing a hypothesis and your methods, but actively doing that and creating, and having to come up with a bunch ideas and realize, is this even feasible? Like, do you have enough time to do that project? Do you have enough resources to do this project? Like, you kind of get into the bare bones, like a skeleton of it all. And I learned a lot about that, and also about report writing.

Aysha McConkey 8:59
Like, especially, you know, I’m just gonna call out some people, like, in the days of AI, right? I feel like so many younger students are now relying a lot on AI. But when you come into like, in a work environment, it is so intense, and you put so much effort and time into creating a report, it’s almost like art in itself, honestly, because you, you’re creating a story, and you also have to elaborate exactly why this research is important and how it can help with, like, future issues and generational problems and all that crazy stuff, right? So, yeah, biggest takeaway was learning that it is 10 times more work, but it’s so good, like I was living a dream, because I’m like, Oh my gosh. I’m like, being a scientist, and I’m researching, like, what I want to do, and, like, figuring out solutions to this problem.

Aysha McConkey 9:45
So yeah, and then also developing more, like, leadership skills and teamwork skills, because then you’re kind of placed in a team that you’re stuck with for, like, who knows how long you’re there, right? And getting to know like, people’s other like, personalities and their like, work drives and then working with that to be a really strong team. And, yeah, it was, it was amazing. I miss the crew, and I hope they all are doing amazing too.

Regan Smith 10:09
Oh, my God, that’s so cool.

Aysha McConkey 10:10
Thank you.

Regan Smith 10:11
Would you just mind explaining for everyone entomology is?

Aysha McConkey 10:15
Yeah, so entomology is the study of insects. So, like, all your creepy crawly bugs. So I specifically worked with an invasive beetle, or a weevil species known as the strawberry blossom weevil, or its scientific name being anthonomus rubi. So I was kind of like the Coleoptera of the researches there, and that’s kind of like where I was going. But then I got also into parasitoid wasps, and that was really, really cool. And and then, like, I think the last two months, I was, like, documenting photos of a bunch of different species of moths that are found all over, like, BC and Canada. So it was, yeah, I was really cool. It was kind of jumping from insect to insect.

Regan Smith 10:54
That’s so cool. Also, most people wouldn’t choose insects, I guess, or like, go into that.

Aysha McConkey 10:58
Funny enough, I am, like, horrified of wasps. And then I ended up studying parasitoid wasps.

Regan Smith 11:04
Oh, wow.

Aysha McConkey 11:05
Yeah. And, well, yeah, like helping with the research project there, because it kind of went in too with anthonomus rubi because they parasitize on the larva. But yeah, it’s, I funny enough. Like I said, I work with bats right now. So last three years, I’ve been with BC Bats, and I feel like insects is kind of a part of everything you can’t like leave the house without coming across insects in general, like they’re vital to our ecosystem. And I think getting into Agriculture, Agri-Foods Canada, I didn’t realize how important insects are, and also how at risk they are too to you know, the extinction rates and climate change, and I want to put it out there, but yeah, insect conservation is a thing, and should be, more people should care about it, because, you know, we’re gonna see less and less like these diverse insects and butterflies and all the like insects that people care about. We’re gonna see less and less if we don’t do something about it, right? So, yeah.

Regan Smith 11:55
Yeah, no, that’s something that I also like, I think about quite a bit, is like a lot of, for conservation it’s easy, not, maybe not easy. But there’s always those animals that everybody loves, like polar bears, like, super cute and everything so easy to get kind of funding and for people to care more about it.

Aysha McConkey 12:11
Oh, yeah.

Regan Smith 12:11
But it’s but, like, especially with things like insects like wasps, like people are like, “I hate wasps. They just like, sting me.”

Aysha McConkey 12:17
Yeah, exactly.

Regan Smith 12:18
It’s harder to get them to care about it and be like, “okay, this is something that’s actually needed as well.” And to, yeah.

Aysha McConkey 12:25
And that’s kind of like what I’ve been using with my art as a means to, like, educate and also inspire people to care. Because I feel like, with a lot of these, like creatures that are really small or they’re not seen often, people don’t only have a good idea of what they look like, they just say, “oh, it’s some flying creature that has a stinger and it’s gonna hurt me,” right? Or, like, with bats, “oh, it’s just a black rat that flies.” And it’s like, okay, it’s not even a rodent, but okay.

Aysha McConkey 12:48
Seeing it like, painted out, or in a photograph, you actually see what they look like and how beautiful and diverse they all are. It gets people to actually think more and be like, “whoa. Like, I never even thought they looked like this or had, like, such big ears or colourful coatings,” or, like, it’s like, when I now make my art and go to markets or go to, like, an art show, people were like, “oh my gosh. Like, what is that?” When I tell them, like, oh, like, “no way.” Or like, “we have that in Canada?” I mean, like, “uh huh, they’re everywhere.”

Aysha McConkey 13:19
So it’s, it really is just science communication is the way to help people understand that these, these animals, need our help. They are super cool. This is why, and this is why you should care. So, yeah.

Regan Smith 13:32
Yeah. So how did you get into, I guess, using art to create this sort of science communication?

Aysha McConkey 13:38
Yeah. So I’ve been drawing since I was literally a baby, at least, that’s what my mom said. And like all the photos that she’s collected over the years, and I just, I always drew like that was my outlet for like, my emotions, and I like my time, like, and if I wasn’t doing something, I was drawing, and it was always of animals. So and, you know, you know, watching documentaries and being obsessed with animals growing up. Like, I wanted to be a vet at first, so I was, like, always drawing dogs and cats and then horses, and then got more diverse with, like, sea creatures and all that fun stuff.

Aysha McConkey 14:09
I know it’s kind of like melancholy, but I thought art, like, oh, it’s just my hobby. Like, I’m never gonna make something of it. And like, it wasn’t until I was in UFV and Stefania, like, picks me out because I would sketch and draw in class to help me, like, listen, which sounds like weird, but it is a way for me to, like, focus and pay attention. And she’s like, “oh my god, is that? Is that your art?” And I’m like, yeah. She’s like, “you just drew that now?” And I’m like, yeah. And she’s like, “you gotta, like, come with me after class. We gotta talk about a project I have,” and then that’s what kind of started the whole mural project here at UFV with me and doing that huge cascade mural all over A building.

Aysha McConkey 14:49
And then from that was like, such a jumping point, from like, oh, oh, my goodness, I’m getting like, people are recognizing me and wanting me to do more art and other murals. And I’m like, oh. Oh, I think this is it, like I can finally use my art and start putting my effort into doing this, to start reaching people. And it’s been going amazing, honestly. Yeah.

Regan Smith 15:10
You mentioned that you were working, so you worked with the community. You’ve been doing these, all these murals. And so how did that work I guess, with also the public coming in, and I guess being curious as to what you’re doing and all that.

Aysha McConkey 15:22
Yeah, it’s, it’s been crazy. Like, both, you know, biology life, I guess, like the that, and then my art life, it’s very different kind of people talking to me and asking me different questions, especially with art. Like, I feel like there’s definitely different crowds. Like one crowd will be like, won’t stop talking, and I love you. And I’m not saying don’t talk to me. I’m just saying it’s, it’s tough because I want to talk too but I also have, you know, this mural work is now work for me. Like, I have, like, a lot of my murals now have deadlines, and you have to, you know, when you’re working the city, they also have a time frame that they gotta, you know, put an anti-graffiti code, and then they gotta publish and all that crazy stuff. I would also say, a lot of people ask me, like, “oh, like, oh, like, where do you get your inspiration?” And then that comes to me saying, “oh, I’m a biologist.” And [they’re] like, “what? How do you have time for all this?” And I’m like, I eventually I do, because this is my life.

Aysha McConkey 16:12
So it’s like, when I’m not doing work at night or doing like, a like, salvaging for amphibians in the middle of the night, I’m out painting on like, walls, or doing art in the day, right? And then usually I’ll give people, like, a small little education about the species I’m painting. But what’s now, kind of super great that’s happening is the murals I paint. So the example, I just did a bat mural for the city of Richmond. I’m now going to be doing a talk about that, about bat conservation, and the species of bats found in Richmond in August, and then kind of elaborating of the mural, the whole mural process, and what it means for bat conservation and for inspiring people about bats. So I love that I’m now, the public care so much, and there’s a attention for it where they want to know more, like, why was this painted, and what can they do to help. So taking, like I said, like conservation and art, and melding it into one to, you know, spread the word.

Regan Smith 17:03
Yeah. Oh, that’s so cool.

Aysha McConkey 17:05
Yeah.

Regan Smith 17:05
I know, yeah. And I know the public loves to talk quite a bit. Yeah. I’ve been doing, doing some field work where I’m out, like, catching bumblebees. I’m walking around with this big butterfly net, and I get at least a few people going, like, “what are you what are you doing?” I’m like “oh, just catching bumblebees.”

Aysha McConkey 17:22
Oh, my goodness, yes, I oh my gosh. Like, for example, I used to monitor like, the great blue heron colony out in the Great Blue Heron [Nature] Reserve, and I’m just sitting in a chair on the path, like, trying not to get run over by people. And then they’ll be like, “what are you doing?” And I’m like, “I’m watching birds.” And then, like, there would be, like, I just think the public has such funny, like, comments. Like, you have some people like, “oh, that’s so cool.” And then I’ll have like, this one guy, he’s like, “there’s a coyote in the bush. You might want to get out of here.” And I’m like, “I can’t leave. I’m okay.” Or, like, they’ll just, like, just crazy stuff.

Aysha McConkey 17:58
Or, I remember when I, like, the toad project, I was talking to you about people that had to slow down their car, and I’d have to explain in the window exactly why they can’t be driving through here. And they’re like, “well, someone told me to take this road.” And I’m like, “oh, okay.” Especially in biology, you’re gonna have, like, awkward moments where you’re gonna have to, like, like, double chest it you’re like, what am I doing? Like, they’re playing 4D chess. Or, like, how am I gonna explain to this guy that he can’t drive on this road and go the other way?

Aysha McConkey 18:30
And usually it works. It’s all about, like, just understanding that person’s perspective and then just kindly explaining, just saying, “hey, man, we’re just being here to protect the frogs.” And it can be just as simple as that, but there is times where, like, people, especially in conservation, just don’t listen like there were people just drove through and it was, it was tough, or people who think you’re… Here’s a great example, when I was, I volunteer with the class board, which is like Cultus, like Stewardship, and they do a lot of, like, environmental work out there.

Aysha McConkey 19:00
And I do small bass removal. And we like, look for small bass egg nests under water, and then rough them up because they’re invasive, and we’re trying to reduce the population. And there’s these new condos that got built at Cultus. I was on the kayak taking notes, taking GPS coordinates, and we have the other biologists diving to look for nests. And then one lady comes on the dock. She’s like, “what are you doing here?” We’re like, “oh, you know, we’re looking for bass. Like, we’re, you know, here, like, because they’re invasive species, we’re doing our best.” She’s like, “you guys are weird. Are you trying to steal, like, boat motors?” And I’m like, what? And then, yeah, like, she thought we were, the diver was trying to steal parts under the boat, and we came up, we’re like, “miss,” like, “we are literally looking for fish.” And she watched us the whole time until we left that exact area, like, yeah, and then you’re just gonna have, like, some people that are like, they don’t understand, and like we’re also on the water. We can’t really do a lot about like, we’re gonna keep paddling and keep swimming, right?

Regan Smith 20:00
No pressure.

Aysha McConkey 20:01
Yeah.

Regan Smith 20:02
Just got eyes on you.

Aysha McConkey 20:03
Yeah. Just a funny story, just an example of, you know, especially for students that are listening, and you’re in co-op, and you’re in the field, you might come across people that aren’t gonna understand, and that’s okay, and the best thing you could do is just accept it and just keep swimming.

Regan Smith 20:17
Back to your mural work.

Aysha McConkey 20:18
Yeah.

Regan Smith 20:19
So was the one in A building, the first one you ever did?

Aysha McConkey 20:23
No, actually, the first one I ever did was in my last year of high school, and I did it for a scholarship, and I had to finish it. I think it was for most students who had to complete like, I think, 200 hours on a project. And mine was a mural, and that took 400 hours. I spent months on it, and it was like, every day after school for a couple hours so and I was just like, 17/18, right? So it’s like, I don’t have the luxury of being an adult when I was doing this project, I was just a kid. So whatever I could do, I muster. I was just stealing paints from, like, taking paints from the art class that they were providing me, and storing everything there.

Aysha McConkey 21:00
And then I think the second mural I did after that was like, kind of like a volunteer mural. I did it for free. I used to volunteer at the Happy Herd Farm Sanctuary. And it was a, it’s a place out in like Aldergrove, Langley, where they rescue farm animals and they live out their days. And it’s a, it’s an amazing place. You can go and visit all the animals. Please go donate, it’s all like, this one lady who’s absolutely amazing. She’s turned her property into, like a rescue and one of the goats had passed. So I did it, like a memorial mural of that goat. So now her face is on the barn, if you ever see it.

Aysha McConkey 21:32
And then, yeah, the and then the UFV mural was, like, my turning point of, like, okay, this is for real. Now, like, I’m actually, can call myself a muralist. I’m reaching out and doing mural applications and doing, like, other like kind of really cool projects. So yeah.

Regan Smith 21:49
So if we were to give you one minute, one minute TED talk on the change that you want to see in regards to your work, what would you say?

Aysha McConkey 21:58
I would say something that, which is, again, we’ve been talking about, is incorporating more art into science. I feel like I’m in both these worlds, and when it comes to biology, or, I mean, any science really, like, I feel like the general public can struggle sometimes and understanding how it works. Or, like, say, for example, my dad and, like, the most normal guy ever right? Like, I give him my report or my research paper, and he sees those diagrams and those, like, you know, those big, heavy words on the sheet, he’s like, “I don’t understand 90% of this.” And not everyone you know as a reader understands like, like, what they’re reading.

Aysha McConkey 22:36
So I really feel like art and using like visual learning is a great way to educate the public and get them interested, and that’s something that I want to start engaging more in, is using art as a means to talk about current issues and current environmental problems and like other like animals at risk, and showing them how cool and why and like in developing like a link between those two is like a goal of mine right now. So I hope in the future that I continue this, this project of mine, and that I love to have proceeds go towards charity, towards certain projects, like, if I focus on this animal, the proceeds for that animal go to like, a conservation project that’s working with them. So yeah, that’s kind of like, if I were to do a TED talk, it’d be something like that.

Regan Smith 23:20
I definitely think that’s needed. Just also, just wanted to mention that, especially of everything I guess, that’s happening with this push against science, creating science to be more, I guess, accessible for everybody to read and understand, like, you don’t need a college degree,

Aysha McConkey 23:37
Yeah.

Regan Smith 23:37
to understand it or care about it, like something that’s, like, really important, like, right now.

Aysha McConkey 23:43
Yeah, like, citizen science, right? Like, I have a bunch of, like, even, like, younger students coming out to help with bat counts. And I tell people, I’m like, “hey, if you want to get some field research in there,” and, like, it’s great on your resume, it’s just good for field skills, just come out. And so many I like, at least, from what I know, different conservation agencies are looking for volunteers, and that’s a great way for just the community to understand and also care about all these projects that are going on. And you don’t need a degree for it, right?

Aysha McConkey 24:10
So I think you know, advertising that more and getting the public more engaged of like, in an invasive cleanup, or looking at like building an owl box, installing it one of the parks, like, more of that is so needed in our time right now.

Regan Smith 24:23
Yeah, I think so. It was great having you on. That’s all my questions for today. Super interesting conversation, and I just, I’m glad you can make it out today.

Aysha McConkey 24:33
I’m glad I can make it out too.