Dr. James Keck is a Research Physician with the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. His interest in infectious disease surveillance blossomed while he was an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer with the Arctic Investigations Program during the H1N1 influenza pandemic. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic he became fascinated with wastewater-based disease surveillance, and he has led a variety of studies advancing the use of this versatile public health tool, particularly for rural and remote communities. His kids found it funny that he was paid to study poop. Dr. Keck enjoys working with multidisciplinary teams to address societal challenges and empowering communities to actively participate in scientific inquiry.