“Every day of our lives, we are surrounded by the fruits of scientific discovery.” So writes Carrie Wolinetz, Associate Director for Science Policy, National Institutes of Health. In her Why Science Policy Matters blog, she provides several examples of tools we have, knowledge we’ve gained and advancements society has made as a result of scientific research and also science policy.
Dr. Wolinetz refers to science policy as supporting “lifesaving research” and since we can’t have policy if we don’t have the science, clearly the work of scientists is crucial and must be communicated.
In November, I attended the 10th Canadian Science Policy Conference in Ottawa, organized by the Canadian Science Policy Centre (CSPC). CSPC 2018, with the theme “Building Bridges Between Science, Policy, and Society,” brought together key players in Canada’s science community, with 790 delegates in attendance (including many from the stem cell community!).
The conference focused on five themes. Most, but not all, of the talks I attended fell under the Science and Society theme. And, of those, a significant number catered to the topic of scientific communications. So does it surprise you to learn that a science policy conference took pains to teach scientists to be better communicators of their research? It occurs to me that scientists and policy makers often have different goals, which can result in a potentially fraught relationship when working together.
In this Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health study, “Can scientists and policy makers work together?” the authors state that, “In theory, ‘evidence based policy making’ should work well. Scientists produce evidence, which policy makers then use for decisions. In return, policy makers provide scientists with evidence requirements and resources for research. The approach has an intuitive, common sense logic.”
There’s theory and then there’s practice. As the authors state, “The imperatives that drive scientists and policy makers are also different, along with their production processes and what they consider to be good evidence.”
CSPC operates as a “non-partisan, arm’s length, not-for-profit organization, independent of government, academia, and the private sector.” In both its vision and its mission, CSPC declares it wants Canada to have an effective science policy community, and that was obvious at its conference. In fact, Ivan Semeniuk, of The Globe and Mail, refers to the annual meetings as “an indispensable networking event, where academics and industry leaders rub shoulders with politicians and bureaucrats to talk about science’s place in government and in Canadian science writ large.” It has achieved “must-attend status.”
I saw value in the talks, the panels, the opportunities for networking between government analysts and university scientists, and the practical sessions scattered throughout the conference.
Scientists could attend an improv workshop to improve their communications skills. At the end of the session, participants had learned the importance of active listening, thinking on their feet, and that it’s alright to fail (very liberating!). And everything was taught through games and laughter that was so loud, the group next door had to ask us to keep the noise level down.
Jim Handman, former executive producer of CBC’s Quirks & Quarks, spoke on two panels I attended. There was sage advice about how scientists can be good interview subjects (simple is not the same as simplistic; if you fear being misunderstood or misquoted by journalists then communicate clearly using plain language; never use jargon!) and this nugget of wisdom: “All science is worthy. Not all science is newsworthy.” And related, he told us biochemists never made it on the show. Sorry folks.
And where did the barnacle reference happen? Jim Handman shared hilarious outtakes from his years in radio, which also included a visual of a very, um, well-endowed barnacle. Apparently these crustaceans reproduce with an organ that stretches up to eight times their body length. These hermaphrodites can even fertilize themselves, if forced to. Hunh.
Back to the theme of Science and Society, I recommend you watch this video from Brown University.
Stacey Johnson
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