Throughout the month of May, the Students’ Union Volunteering service organised a series of dynamic training sessions to provide a crash course in effective science communication. Students were invited to choose from a menu of options and build their own learning pathway, culminating in the slam competition on June 6th: Energizing Solutions for a Sustainable Planet.
Science Communication with Neurodiverse Audiences workshop
Eliza Eaton presenting.
To kick off the slam, Eliza Eaton delivered a workshop about tailoring science communication to neurodiverse audiences. Eliza is a renowned autistic advocate and expert in biomedical science community engagement. Students participated in an interactive reflection session to round off the learning experience.
Students reflected on their key takeaways from the workshop:
- “I learnt to avoid deficit-based thinking and be aware of accuracy in language usage.”
- “I learnt that science communication requires constant reflection.”
- “I learnt to talk about autism in a value-neutral way and to carefully consider the language I am using, as how we talk influences how we think!”
Sir Professor Richard Catlow talk
In the next event of the series, Professor Catlow discussed the importance of fostering international partnerships and cooperation in scientific research. He drew on experiences at the Davy Faraday Laboratory of the Royal Institution, Chair, InterAcademy Partnership (IAP), International Science Council, and Royal Society, as well as here at UCL.
Scientific Storytelling workshop
Anna's interactive presentation.
Next up was Anna Ploszajsk for a fascinating workshop on scientific storytelling. Our French exchange students from the Learning Planet Institute also stopped by to visit. Students drew a range of insights from Anna's interactive workshop:
“I discovered a very interesting way to frame my research as a story in order to make it more appealing. I learnt that science communication is not so different to any other type of communication or story.” (PhD student, UCL).
"Attending the storytelling workshop was truly eye-opening. It highlighted the power of storytelling in science communication, emphasizing how a well-crafted narrative can evoke imagination, empathy, and excitement. Understanding the audience's needs and knowledge was crucial, and the workshop provided practical insights into creating impactful stories with clear beginnings, middles, and ends. It was an inspiring experience that has enriched my approach to communicating complex scientific concepts." (Master's student, Learning Planet Institute)
Virtual Panel: Culturally Compassionate Science Communication
During this webinar, we were joined by two voluntary and community experts, Kirit Mistry and Priscilla Igwe, to discuss ways that students and future scientists can communicate accurately and compassionately about health and medical research that affects marginalised cultural groups. Their conversation encouraged students to take into consideration how different marginalised identities may perceive scientific language, may have hesitations about scientific institutions and research, and how students can better understand how to address this in their practice.
We and AI talk
At our fifth event, Tania Duarte, coordinator of the nonprofit Better Images of AI project, shared research, experiences and images from the ongoing mission to reimagine unhelpful pictures of Artificial intelligence.
She explained how a global collaboration of researchers, AI institutes, activists and creatives worked together to identify and challenge dominant tropes in visual AI representation. One student participant has since volunteered with We and AI on an ongoing collaborative project.
The main event... our Science Communication Slam!
On June 6th, three students took to the stage to battle it out in our very first Slam on the theme of 'Energizing Solutions for a Sustainable Planet'. Our students presented 3 minute talks on the topics of regenerative agriculture, collaborative research with activists and saving the sinking city of Jakarta through green spaces. A panel of experts from the non-profit sector judged our students on the criteria of accessibility, messaging, real world connections and audience engagement.
Anna Almasan: 'How regenerative farming can help solve climate change.'
Clarissa Salmon: 'The development of moral norms against oil and gas expansion.'
Pricilia Vibrani: 'Jakarta: From the sinking to a green city.'
Our winner was Clarissa Salmon, presenting her collaborative activist research about the development of norms against oil and gas expansion.
Pricilia Vibrani, MSc Real Estate Economics and Investment Analysis, reflected on her experiences of the Science Communication Slam:
Why did you compete and did you find it valuable?
"I competed because it was a great opportunity to share insights from my studies with people who aren’t so aware of the diversity of sustainability solutions. We had access to a personalised training workshop before the slam, where I got insightful inputs from the other participants and the communication coach. Ultimately, I learnt that being a great communicator is about creating relationships with your audience."
Why is science communication important in the context of the climate crisis?
"I think that this event was important because communication is vital in combatting climate change. There is still a lot of work to do to on our sustainability journey, but the more we communicate the more we will know how to take part and tackle the climate crisis."
