Science Communication

How can scientists make their expertise heard over the din of misinformation? It’s a good question—and our science communication experts have answers.


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Women working in science, technology, engineering and mathematics at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory pose for a photo in mission control in honor of Women in Science Day. Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Fighting for a Diverse and Equitable STEM Workforce in Colorado

Marian Hamilton, , UCS

October 15, 2018 3:17 PM EDT

In the state of Colorado, there are just over two million women, making up 53% of the enrolled undergraduate population and 50% of the workforce. However, women account for only 33% of those graduating with degrees in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) and hold only 26% of STEM jobs in the state. Colorado is not unique – this disparity in STEM education and employment is a nation-wide trend. This disparity begins early, with difference in male and female student interest in STEM showing up as early as middle school, by some estimates, and female students being more likely to self-describe themselves as “bad at math” as early as second grade. These differences in encouragement and interest have broad-reaching, profound, and lifelong implications for women’s economic security, career advancement, and workforce readiness compared to their male counterparts. Read more >

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Participants arrive at science communication and advocacy workshop (Photo credit: T. Campbell)

Op-Eds for Cheeseheads: Training New Scientists as Communicators in Wisconsin Food Systems Policy

Greta Landis, , UCS

September 4, 2018 2:03 PM EDT

“Facts aren’t impartial. They have great implications for people. They threaten people.” A few dozen graduate students and handful of public employees and farmers in the room nod thoughtfully over Margaret’s comment, laughing as she says, “It has never been a rational world!” On a June afternoon at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, this group is looking to a panel of experts on science communication and advocacy with big questions: how should new scientists start public communication, and where do they have leverage in food systems policy?

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Photo: T. Campbell
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The Sociopolitical Evolution of a Scientist: Incorporating Advocacy into My Graduate School Experience

Alex Hruska, , UCS

August 31, 2018 9:19 AM EDT

During September of 2016, I was excited to begin my bioengineering master’s program in Boston, home to the world’s largest community of biomedical researchers. But on November 8th, the US political landscape abruptly transformed, and suddenly my research studying how cancer spreads throughout the body felt microscopic. The aftermath of the 2016 election forced me to examine my identity; I saw how the wave of anti-LGBT rhetoric and violence left my community feeling unsafe. Raised by a family of immigrants, I saw my lab mate barred from entering the country after visiting her family in Iran. And as a scientist, I saw how the spread of misinformation caused public distrust in science, permeating our highest levels of government. Read more >

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Photo: KOMUnews/Flickr

As States Target University Students for Voter Suppression, Student Groups are Fighting Back

, Kendall Science Fellow

August 7, 2018 5:11 PM EDT

As the 2018 general midterm election approaches, college student voting rights are under attack.  Students are being specifically targeted for voter suppression in a number of states by excluding student identification as an acceptable form of voter identification, tightening up residency requirements, and selectively spreading misinformation. Fortunately, in several states, campus-wide and student-led movements are organizing and mobilizing college voters in a recognition of the historic role that students have played in the civil and voting rights movements in the United States and abroad.

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Photo: KOMUnews/Flickr
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