Determined, Chaotic, & Hopeful for Humankind: Bryson Mineart

People of the SW CASC is a series of profiles that highlight the important work and unique life experiences of staff members of the Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center.

Bryson Mineart is the Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center Website Manager and is in his last semester as an undergraduate in the Computer Science program at the University of Arizona. Hired in 2019 as a student assistant, Bryson’s role with the SW CASC has evolved as his interests and studies changed. Originally an Astrophysics major, Bryson provided communications support to the SW CASC. Later, after changing his major to Computer Science, Bryson was able to apply what he was learning in his classes to the SW CASC website. He now works to maintain the design, structure, and content of the website while writing custom code and making regular updates to ensure the site runs smoothly. Bryson also served as a leader in the content audit and redesign of the SW CASC website in 2022. 

Having worked for the SW CASC through his time as an undergraduate, Bryson is thankful for the relevant experience that the position has provided him. “It’s a really cool student job and it’s genuinely fun designing websites,” he said. “This position has given me more confidence in the skills that I’ve learned [in school]. This job has further indicated that this is something I definitely want to pursue as a career.”

While not being a climate adaptation expert, Bryson hopes that his role in maintaining the SW CASC website furthers climate adaptation efforts in the Southwest. “Having an efficiently functioning website will allow for information from PIs, researchers, and our news to be more easily accessible to the public which in general is beneficial for communicating science,” he said. “We have tons of research and all the data to show that climate change is a serious problem and we need to do something about it, but actually getting that information into a usable format and communicating that information to the general public requires, at the end of the day, everybody to contribute.”

Bryson is optimistic about the future of climate adaptation, and especially the link between climate and computer science. He sees the up-and-coming field of quantum computing as an important factor in future climate work. “Quantum computing at its best can run through problems, scenarios, and probabilities that we can’t even imagine because classical computing can’t do it,” he said. “With quantum computing comes very accurate weather predictions, and in terms of building climate models, the further we go with quantum computing the better those models will become; this will only help us make better [adaptation] decisions.”

Bryson grew up on a farm in Keosauqua, Iowa, a small town on the Des Moines River. As the valedictorian of his graduating class, Bryson always envisioned a career in which he could help other people. He describes himself as determined, (a little bit) chaotic, and hopeful for humankind. Outside of work and his studies, Bryson loves to spend time outdoors and with his dog, Remus. “I like to do anything that isn’t on the computer,” he said. “Hiking, working on my car, and anything to get outside. Going outside with Remus and doing anything that brings him happiness also makes me happy.”

Bryson has been a valuable member of the SW CASC team for the past four years. As he wraps up his final semester at the University of Arizona, the SW CASC wishes Bryson the best of luck in the next step of his career and beyond.