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Jun 10, 2022 Commentary

Responsible science communication in Latin America: reflections on challenges

by Claudia Aguirre Rios , Sergio de Régules

Practitioners of responsible science communication in Latin American countries face context-dependent challenges ranging from high poverty and inequality to a public from an extremely varied palette of cultural backgrounds. Effort has been done in the region to foster a coherent community of science communicators. This article reflects on the history of science communication in Latin America and how these challenges are being faced.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Commentary

Responsible science communication in Africa: rethinking drivers of policy, Afrocentricity and public engagement

by Elizabeth Rasekoala

The EU-funded RETHINK Project has demonstrated the critical need for transformational pathways in how science communicators navigate the increasingly challenging landscape of the field, in an era of growing public distrust, the expansion of online ‘mis-information’ digital platforms, and the resulting disconnection between science communicators and the general public. This Commentary seeks to locate, contextualise, and interrogate the good practice outcomes and recommendations of the RETHINK Project within the African regional scenario, and within the contexts, challenges and opportunities that exist therein. To achieve this, the author argues, African science communicators must actively pursue a radical and explicitly transformational agenda of intellectual Afrocentricity, the decolonisation of their practices and programmes, and address the multiple gaps inherent across the policy, practice, research, resources, and capacity-building divides on the continent. The prospects for the delivery of this agenda are further elaborated in a transformative and re-defined — ‘SMART’ Framework for Science Communication & Public Engagement in Africa.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Commentary

Developing open, reflexive and socially responsible science communication research and practice

by Eric A. Jensen

There are many different pathways into science communication practice and research. But rarely do these pathways require critical reflection on what it means to be a ‘responsible’ science communicator or researcher. The need for this kind of critical reflection is increasingly salient in a world marked by the wilful disregard of evidence in many high-profile contexts, including politics and, most recently, public health. Responsible science communicators and researchers are audience- and impact-focused, beginning their decision-making process by considering their audiences’ starting positions, needs and values. This article outlines some key considerations for developing socially responsibility for science communication as a field both in terms of practice and research.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Article

A methodological approach to co-design citizen science communication strategies directed to quadruple-helix stakeholders

by Joana Magalhães , Blanca Guasch , Rosa Arias , Paolo Giardullo , Ana Elorza , Inês Navalhas , Esther Marín-González , Marzia Mazzonetto , Cristina Luís

Citizen Science (CS) can help change the paradigm of science communication. To test this, 38 ongoing CS projects from Italy, Portugal and Spain have been selected by the H2020 NEWSERA project to act as pilots in the development of communication strategies, specifically targeting stakeholders in the quadruple helix. The projects, together with stakeholder representatives and science communication and journalism professionals participated in a series of workshops — #CitSciComm Labs — where communication strategies were co-designed, using adapted design-thinking methods. The innovative methodological approach is hereby presented and can be an inspiration for others willing to implement improved communication strategies to target different stakeholders.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Commentary

Beyond the needs of science — can openness and reflexivity push the polish science communication further?

by Wiktor Gajewski

The Polish science communication field has grown into a robust and diverse community. Centralised and governmentally funded initiatives are complemented by more bottom-up actions led by academia, researchers, journalists and educators. Still, the main goals of science communication in Poland seem to be a diffusion of scientific knowledge and building trust towards science and scientist. The concept of openness and reflexivity could help to include the needs and perspectives of non-scientific audiences into science communication practice in Poland.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Article

Roles, incentives, training and audiences for science communication: perspectives from female science communicators

by Clare Wilkinson , Elena Milani , Andy Ridgway , Emma Weitkamp

Both research and anecdote in science communication suggests that it is a field where women feel ‘at home’, with high numbers of women science communicators and students on training programmes, but why might this be the case? Using data gathered from a survey of 459 science communicators based in Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Sweden and the U.K., we examine the perspectives of female science communicators, in terms of working practices, motivations and barriers to communicate.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Commentary

Commentary: rethinking iteratively (from Australia)

by Joan Leach

The invitation to ReThink science engagement is irresistible and timely. And that rethinking will be informed by the location in which its done. While ‘speaking for’ wide swaths of the world, in this case, Australia and its region, would be meaningless and probably not terribly useful, the call to ReThink science engagement with this place in mind is encouraging and welcome. The following commentary, then, will focus on what rethinking science engagement might look like from Australia with the guiding frame of “responsible science communication” at hand and some of the core concepts of ReThink at the fore — reflection, co-creation, and openness in science engagement. To add a counterpoint to the ReThink projects core concepts, I briefly suggest some further concepts to ‘trouble’ easy interpretations of approaches to science communication — reflexivity, co-production, and science communication for the public good. Taken together, all of these concepts provide a useful frame for some of the major issues and opportunities for science communication in our region but also highlight the tensions in current approaches to science engagement. These tensions are worth struggling over and unpacking in relation to global differences and aims for science engagement.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 10, 2022 Article

Levelling the playing field: lessons from sport on re-framing science engagement as a benefit to the individual

by Lindsay Keith , Gary Kerr

The workforces of the Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) industries suffer from skills gaps and lack diversity. Science engagement activities often try to solve these problems through targeting audiences under-represented in the STEM workforces. There is limited data, however, to suggest that these engagement efforts are successful in translating into more diverse workforces. We draw upon Unicef’s ‘Sport for Development’ model and propose a new conceptual framework: ‘Science Engagement for Good’. This frames science engagement activities around the benefits to individuals, families and communities, rather than the benefits to STEM industries, the economy or society at large.

Volume 21Issue 042022Special Issue: Responsible science communication across the globe (RETHINK)

Jun 01, 2022 Conference Review

Mainstreaming post-2020 biodiversity through science communication and education

by Shen Zhou , Chenxin Lv , xinchang Sun

The 5th Luosuo River Science Education Forum was held online from December 7 to 8, 2021, with the theme “Education for Ecological Civilization: Post-2020 Biodiversity Education and Communication”. The Forum assembled stakeholders to discuss four aspects of the topic: biodiversity conservation with Chinese characteristics, biodiversity education theory, biodiversity education practice, and biodiversity communication innovation, to promote “global vision and local action” in mainstreaming biodiversity conservation.

Volume 21Issue 032022

May 30, 2022 Article

Experiencing science communication from a local perspective: an analysis of the volunteer SciCom groups in Chihuahua, Mexico

by Iván Jalil Antón Carreño-Márquez , Marie Astrid Cereceres-Aguirre

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranks Mexico in one of the last places in science performance [OECD, 2019]. This has been a concern for some local science communication groups (SCGs) in small and medium-sized cities, whose mission is to fill this disparity by performing science communication (SciCom) activities. The SCGs were contacted via a survey to collect information about their dynamics and public reach. A descriptive analysis enabled the identification of the logistics and coordination issues found among SCGs. Consequently, a local network of science communication groups is advised to reinforce their impact.

Volume 21Issue 032022

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