Sessions hosted by the ESA SciComm Section

workshops; live storytelling session & discussion; “Ask A Pro” mentoring meet-ups; #SketchYourScience; business meeting & meet-up — details below.

1. Workshop: Improv Your Science: building skills for effective communication

Monday, August 7, 10:15-11:30 am
OCC room C123

Start the Annual Meeting off right and join in on a fun and interactive session. We will focus on building and practicing skills to strengthen public speaking, adaptability, listening, and teamwork. Practicing improvisation can help scientists talk about their research spontaneously, become more open and direct in their communications, and build stronger connections with their audiences. We will practice how to adjust intonation and body language based on audience cues, and learn how to listen to understand. The session will provide tools to improve all forms of oral communication, from conference presentations and public lectures to meetings with policymakers and journalists.

Dr. Annaliese Hettinger, the ESA SciComm Section’s Secretary, will lead this workshop. Click to view in program.

2. Workshop: Branding is not a dirty word: marketing yourself and your science in a digital world

Monday, August 7, 11:30 am-1:15 pm
OCC room D131

Many scientists cringe at the notion of “branding” themselves or their science, but establishing a cohesive marketing strategy can help you achieve better collaborators, stronger grant applications, and more exciting professional opportunities. In this lively, interactive workshop, we will cover the fundamentals of identifying, developing, maintaining, and leveraging your personal brand (the things that make you, YOU) to expand your opportunities in research and beyond.

This workshop will be led by our new Chair, Dr. Kika Tuff, founder of Impact Media Lab, a science communication agency. Click to view in program.

3. SciComm Section Business Meeting

Photos from meeting, Twin Stadium, food trucks, farmers markets and the city

Tuesday, August 8, 6:30-8:00 pm
OCC room E142

Join us for a brief engaging (we promise!) business meeting where we’ll discuss how to allocate our budget, finalize plans for the next officer election (including accepting nominations for next year’s officers!), and start planning for #ESA2018. Afterward, let’s adjourn to a local watering hole to talk #scicomm, network, and catch up. Looking forward to hanging out with you and getting your input for the direction of the section!

4. Storytelling Social for Science Communication

Photos from meeting, Twin Stadium, food trucks, farmers markets and the city

Wednesday, August 9, 11:30 am-1:15 pm
OCC D140

5. Springer Nature Storytellers at ESA: Sips, Snacks, and Stories about Ecology

Wednesday, August 9, Doors open at 6:30PM and the show runs from 7:00-9:00 pm.
OCC room B116
RSVP here (required); each RSVP includes one free drink!

Join Springer Nature, our partners at The Story Collider and the ESA Science Communication Section for a fun evening of sips, snacks and true, personal ecology stories told by researchers themselves. Inspirational, captivating, enlightening and certainly entertaining, you will have the opportunity to hear about and connect with the experiences of those on the front lines of ecological discovery.

Featuring:
Karin Bodewits
Kirsten Grorud-Colvert
Laura Meyerson
Ricardo Rozzi
Elisa Schaum

6. “Ask a Pro” Mixers during Happy Hours in Exhibit Hall: Volunteers Needed!

One of the main requests members made in the 2015 section planning survey was networking and mentorship support and opportunities.

We’re looking for volunteers willing to be at our booth to help us meet these objectives.

Volunteers will respond to career and career-transition questions and generally represent the diversity of possible SciComm careers already pursued by ESA members. Section officers will be present to answer questions about the section itself.

Please contact us directly if you are willing to volunteer for one or more of these sessions. And if you have ideas and suggestions, please let us know!

This popular activity will be back for the third straight year! This activity will be available at our booth on an on-going basis throughout the conference.

Drop by our booth to share a visual explanation of your research, system, study organism, etc. Every year, we learn a ton about what ESA members are studying and the stories behind their research.

And importantly, there is a lot of research pointing to a host of benefits for using drawing to learn, assess, and communicate science. Don’t worry -your sketch doesn’t have to be fancy! The beauty is in the story it tells.

Please contact us if you’d like to volunteer at the SciComm Section booth this year. We’ll provide you everything you need to know to answer questions, connect people to member resources, etc.

—————-

SciComm -related activities and sessions at #ESA2017

If you’re looking for even more SciComm at the conference, here are some sessions that caught our attention.

This list is in development. If you are aware of an activity, session, or talk taking place which relates to SciComm, feel free to suggest we add it to the list by emailing or by using the comments section below. We will update this page as often as possible.

Sessions are listed below according to type: Social/Business, Workshops, Ignites, Special Sessions, Symposia, and Talks.

Social/Business

• SciComm Section Business Meeting & Meet-Up; Tuesday, August 8, 6:30-8:00pm, OCC room E142
• #SketchYourScience at SciComm booth throughout conference
• Ask a Pro meet-ups at SciComm booth: M-W, 4-6pm in the Exhibit Hall. Click here for details and to volunteer!
• 500 Women Scientist lunch meet-up: Tuesday August 8 12-1:15pm (OCC A105)
• Storytelling Social for Science Communication: Wednesday, August 9, 11:30 am-1:15 pm (OCC D140)
• Springer Nature Storytellers at ESA-Sips, Snacks, and Stories about Ecology: Wednesday, August 9. Doors open at 6:30PM and the show runs from 7:00-9:00 pm.
  OCC room B116 RSVP here (required); each RSVP includes one free drink!
• Public Engagement Social (Open to All ESA Members), Wednesday, August 9 6:30-8:00 PM.

Workshops

*Though technically a special session, SciComm Section secretary Annaliese Hettinger is leading an Improv Your Science workshop. See SS 3 below or click here for details.

Ignites

Special Sessions

Symposia

Talks & Posters

If you are giving, or know of, a regular conference talk relating to some kind of SciComm, please let us know. We will happily post links to the program listing, but we don’t currently have the capacity to search the entire program for potentially relevant talks.

• COS 159-1 – Establishing a baseline: documenting how ecological concepts are represented in children’s books
• PS 17-38 – Mayfly drift in response to artificial light at night: A case study in science communication
• PS 21-70 – Integrating microbial diversity in citizen science BioBlitz projects; combining basic ecology investigation with science communication
• COS 182-5 – Walking the talk: Increasing our impact by empowering faculty and staff science communicators
• PS 24-103 – Communicating the impact of women scientists in the history of ecological genetics
• PS 22-77 – Field environmental philosophy: a methodological approach to integrate sciences, arts, and ethics into education at ILTER sites
• PS 74-129 – Michigan ZoomIN: From field to undergraduates to NGSS aligned lessons for K-12 classrooms

Don’t see what you’re looking for?

Click here for a search of the #ESA2017 preliminary program using “science communication”.