Escape from the Ivory Tower: A Guide to Making Your Science Matter - Softcover

Baron, Nancy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1597266647 ISBN 13: 9781597266642

Verlag: Island Press, 2010

Inhaltsangabe

Most scientists and researchers aren’t prepared to talk to the press or to policymakers—or to deal with backlash. Many researchers have the horror stories to prove it. What’s clear, according to Nancy Baron, is that scientists, journalists and public policymakers come from different cultures. They follow different sets of rules, pursue different goals, and speak their own language. To effectively reach journalists and public officials, scientists need to learn new skills and rules of engagement. No matter what your specialty, the keys to success are clear thinking, knowing what you want to say, understanding your audience, and using everyday language to get your main points across.
 
In this practical and entertaining guide to communicating science, Baron explains how to engage your audience and explain why a particular finding matters. She explores how to ace your interview, promote a paper, enter the political fray, and use new media to connect with your audience. The book includes advice from journalists, decision makers, new media experts, bloggers and some of the thousands of scientists who have participated in her communication workshops. Many of the researchers she has worked with have gone on to become well-known spokespeople for science-related issues. Baron and her protégées describe the risks and rewards of “speaking up,” how to deal with criticism, and the link between communications and leadership. The final chapter, ‘Leading the Way’ offers guidance to scientists who want to become agents of change and make your science matter. Whether you are an absolute beginner or a seasoned veteran looking to hone your skills, Escape From the Ivory Tower can help make your science understood, appreciated and perhaps acted upon.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Nancy Baron is Outreach Director of COMPASS, the Communications Partnership for Science and the Sea. She designed and leads the communications trainings for the Aldo Leopold Leadership Program. She and her COMPASS team offer a wide range of workshops for academic scientists as well as scientists who work for the government and non-governmental organizations in North America and abroad. Her experience as a Canadian National Parks biologist and science writer inspired her to help bridge the gaps among scientists, journalists, and policymakers. An ardent naturalist, Baron has led natural history expeditions around the world. She wrote the popular introductory field guide, Birds of the Pacific Northwest, as a way to help people engage with the natural world.

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Escape from the Ivory Tower

A Guide to Making Your Science Matter

By Nancy Baron

ISLAND PRESS

Copyright © 2010 Nancy Baron
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-59726-664-2

Contents

Preface, 
Acknowledgments, 
Foreword: Donald Kennedy, 
Part I The Scientist Communicator, 
Chapter 1. Introduction, 
Chapter 2. The Decision to Speak Out, 
Part II A Clash of Cultures, 
Chapter 3. What You Need to Know about Journalists, 
Chapter 4. Tell Me a Story: What Journalists Want from You, 
Chapter 5. What the Changing World of the Media Means for You, 
Chapter 6. What You Need to Know about Policymakers, 
Chapter 7. Inform My Decision: What Policymakers Want from You, 
Part III The How-To Toolkit, 
Chapter 8. Deliver a Clear Message, 
Chapter 9. Ace Your Interview, 
Chapter 10. Fine-Tune for Radio and Television, 
Chapter 11. Reach out Instead of Waiting, 
Chapter 12. Promote a Paper, 
Chapter 13. Enter the Political Fray, 
Part IV Becoming an Agent of Change, 
Chapter 14. After the Splash, the Backlash, 
Chapter 15. Leading the Way: Ten Steps to Success, 
References, 
Index, 

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Science is more than just fascinating knowledge, it is also useful knowledge. I believe passionately that science should inform our decisions.

—Jane Lubchenco

Do you think your science should be useful? Would you like it to influence public policy or gain widespread recognition beyond your peers? Or perhaps even sway public opinion and help steer the course of history or human behavior? That's what this book is about: learning how to make your science matter, rather than getting buried in the dusty piles of scientific articles that collect in drifts on shelves and forgotten computer files.

This is a time of great challenges and opportunities for scientists and society. President Barack Obama famously promised to restore science "to its rightful place" after a long period of being sidelined and "to listen to what scientists have to say, even when it's inconvenient—especially when it's inconvenient" (Obama 2008). It is time for the very best scientists to engage.

Science is on the front lines as the U.S. Congress and state governments are paying increasing attention and debating climate change and other environmental and sustainability issues. The calls are mounting for scientists to talk to decision makers, provide testimony, answer journalists' questions, and help inform the public on issues of societal urgency. Yet there is a dearth of scientists who can deliver their information effectively and are willing to speak out.

On the heels of her confirmation as chief administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Jane Lubchenco offered her perspective: "Decisions are going to take into account a number of things—values, politics, economics—but science should be at the table in a way that is understandable and relevant and credible and salient" (Witze 2009).

Lubchenco long ago became convinced of society's need for scientists to be more engaged. She sacrificed time from her research to assume leadership roles where she espoused the importance of communicating science. Her first call to arms came in a 1998 Science paper, "Entering the Century of the Environment: A New Social Contract for Science," where she argued that scientists need to be more forthcoming and share their research to benefit government managers, policymakers, and society at large. She urged her colleagues to invoke "the full power of the scientific enterprise in discovering new knowledge, in communicating existing and new understanding to the public and to policymakers, and in helping society move toward sustainability through a better understanding of the consequences of policy actions—or inaction" (Lubchenco 1998).

But Lubchenco didn't enter her field to change the world. Her story began in much the same way as yours did, most likely. You were probably driven, at least in the early days, by an intense desire to follow your curiosity. You dove into an all-consuming passion, pursuing answers to the questions that intrigued you—learning for learning's sake.

But then, perhaps you reached a second stage marked by a creeping awareness that what you are studying is changing—and likely not for the better. This is particularly true if you study the natural world. Environmental researchers, witnesses to nature, are often among the first to spot early signs when things are not as they should be.

At some point, your studies may have switched from understanding the natural aspects of a species, ecosystem, or physical phenomenon to investigating those changes that are cause for concern. Growing frustration and alarm may lead to the third stage—voicing your views as an expert.

"Two experiences motivated my decision to become engaged in science to inform policy decisions," says Barry Noon, an ecologist at Colorado State University who became embroiled in the spotted owl debate. "The first was a personal sense of loss over places that were important to me as a child—specifically, trout streams in Pennsylvania that I fished with my father. The second was a sense of anger over the distortion of science findings, stemming from research that I and others engaged in."

Yet moving beyond the safe, well-defined confines of research can be a difficult and even scary decision. Are you going to try to do something about the changes you are seeing? How do you reach beyond your research circles to communicate what you are observing to the wider world—why it matters, the potential risks, the possible solutions?

If you decide you want to inform those outside your research arena and help guide public discourse, you will need to learn a new set of skills. These include knowing exactly what you want to say, understanding your audience, and using common language to get your main points across clearly.

Ironically, just at the moment when science has more than ever to say about urgent issues, you must learn to navigate a world that is in rapid flux. The media is undergoing a revolution, and as a result, opportunities for scientists are simultaneously shrinking in some areas while expanding in others. Mainstream media outlets, especially newspapers, are in financial crisis, struggling to find new sources of income as subscriptions plummet and advertising goes to Craigslist and other places online. Still, mainstream media remain trusted sources of reliable information. At the same time, "new media" venues play an increasingly important role. They are instant, responsive, and effective at activating the power of the crowd. Often they riff off the mainstream media who do the original reporting. Questions still linger regarding the trustworthiness of some "new media," which is often heavy on opinion.

As the rules for what constitutes news are rewritten, the boundaries between old and new have blurred. Mainstream sources have begun to resemble "new" media by incorporating video, podcasting, and blogs, while online sources endeavor to earn credibility by instituting more formal editorial guidelines and processes. In light of such rapid and sweeping changes, only one thing is certain: the appetite for science news and information is alive and well, and if you can clearly and concisely articulate why your science matters, your message can transcend the medium.

Despite the stresses the news industry is enduring, local and...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Island Press
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2010
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1597266647
• ISBN 13: 9781597266642
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 246
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: preigu; mail@preigu.de; ; Lengericher Landstr. 19; Osnabrück; 49078; Deutschland