Ok, now that I've slept a bit... I am incredibly proud to announce that I celebrated the 50th Anniversary of #EarthDay by (successfully) defending my #PhD! I must admit, of all the curve balls in all the research, I did not see "defending from home during a pandemic" coming- 1/n https://twitter.com/KrisSabbi/status/1253060698013347841

HOWEVER, in some ways (except for the existential dread, which definitely did not make anything easier) most of the last few months didn't feel all that different from what it might have been 2/n

But even though the last few months have felt a bit lonely in some ways, and like riding a research high in others... 3/n

...it has never been more clear to me that #science is a team sport. 4/n

Every bit of research that I have ever been lucky enough to be a part of has been built upon the foundations of the scientists who came before us- and I cannot express how thankful I am to be a part of it. 5/n

I want to thank @KibaleChimps for taking a chance on a film-major with a science habit. Everyone with KCP has been incredible to work with- they helped shape my absolute tangle of ideas and enthusiasm into this work that I am so proud of. 6/n

And I want to thank the agencies that funded this work- @TheLeakeyFndtn, @WennerGrenOrg, @AmPhilSociety, the University of New Mexico- thank you for believing in the projecting and making my science possible. 7/n

There are also at least a bazillion people that I met along the way that I could not have ever done this without. I'm working my way through thanking them each individually and hope to finish sending those texts and emails by this time in 2050. 8/n

The road from Ph-Idea to #PhDone has been a marathon of obstacle courses- but I can honestly say that I've loved it so much more than I hated it. I've been so luckily and had so much fun with this (ridiculously difficult but rewarding) work. 9/n

So to end this thread- here's one more #chimpfant picture- and one last round of thanks. This time, for the chimps that let me follow them day in and day out for so many months. With love and gratitude, Kris 10/fin