Every season, the topic of “how do I find experts” comes us. The following article takes ideas and discussions shared from the Facebook Group FLL: Share & Learn .

1. “Experts” can be very broadly defined. Think outside the box. In the Intro Orbit season, it was very difficult to talk to an astronaut. However, if your team was studying growing plants in space, you could start with a florist or a botanist. Professors at local universities are often a great resource.

2. This job is not all for the coach. Encourage the students to think about what types of people might work in jobs related to their topic. Encourage the students to draft emails and do the cold calls. It is a great way to develop communication skills. Often times, people will help just because the kids asked.

3. Have a coach look at LinkedIn and see if there are any people working in the field you want.

4. Have a coach join Facebook Groups for a particular field or hobby. For instance if you needed to talk to a truck driver in Cargo Connect, join some truck driver groups and make a post on behalf of you your team.

5. Think local always. If you need to research delivery trucks, think of the FedEx truck going around your neighborhood. There are people in your local community who are more likely to help local kids.

6. Search of scientific papers on the topic and then contact the authors.

7. Reach out to your network of friends. Many coaches will make a post on their personal facebook page to ask if anyone knows a particular type of expert.

8. Remember that the expert does not need to live near you. You can always talk to them via Zoom/Google Meets, etc.