Science communication training for UNEP
Brendon Bosworth presenting at the UNEP Comms Academy. Photo courtesy of UNEP.
Yesterday, Tali Hoffman (founder of Honeyguide Science Communication) and I had the pleasure of running a science communication training workshop for UNEP’s Communication Division.
We are working, separately, on a pilot science communication training programme at UNEP focused on publications (read more about that here). We were pleased to be invited to share our training with the broader comms team as part of UNEP’s Comms Academy.
Covering the fundamentals
We ran two sessions of 1.5 hours each. In the first, we covered the fundamentals of science communication, paying attention to the importance of communication strategy, storytelling, and solutions-oriented messaging.
In our second session, we delved into the importance of accurately communicating science, and discussed ways of making science more accessible for non-specialists.
Data storytelling and visualisation
We dedicated a chunk of time to data storytelling and visualisation. Tali took the team through an example of a scientific graph that was cluttered and tough to understand. She showed how with various tweaks, the graph could be improved so that it told a story and was easy to digest.
As one participant noted, this was a complete “makeover.”
Learning from each other
One of the greatest things for me as a science communication trainer and workshop facilitator is how much I learn from the people who attend our trainings.
Roughly 100 people attended (in-person and via remote). An incredible turnout! We were impressed by the level of engagement, and had valuable discussions about science communication. For me, it's always rewarding to learn from the people on the ground who are doing communication work about some of the most important issues of our time.
I think our task, as communicators, is to make the science around issues like climate change and environmental degradation relevant to people and what they care about. By making science more accessible, we open the doors to bring more people into the conversation and drive change.
New science communication workshop for 2023
Tali and I are developing a new half-day science communication workshop (in addition to our existing month-long online course), which we'll be rolling out in early 2023. If you, or your organization, are looking to sharpen your science communication skills - get in touch!
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Brendon Bosworth is a science communication trainer and the principal consultant at Human Element Communications.