Science communication is an attractive option for researchers who are ready to leave the lab environment but do not want to make a complete break from science. Traditionally, many researchers who are interested in communication have looked to science writing as a new career. Many scientists have also become science communication professionals, working in the areas of public relations, event planning, editorial production, marketing, and so on.

Researchers looking for a new career quickly discover that breaking into the field requires appropriate training. Due to the rapidly changing dynamics of the relationship between science and society and the multi-faceted nature of the media system, scientists require more than simple “self-training” if they want to earn a living through science communication. But what does “more” mean? What courses should a scientist take? Are there unmissable subjects? This session will provide an opportunity for some of Europe’s most experienced science communication teachers to discuss the matter. Speakers will also comment on their own experience in managing science communication programs, as well as their efforts to establish relations in a common European framework.

Today, scientists must keep all their options open for new career opportunities not only within but also past and alongside research. Whatever the choice, management skills have become an indispensable qualification for a successful career. This is the outcome of a paradigm change: scientists and administrators are gradually realizing the importance of better organization and coordination, lean and efficient work processes and effective leadership. Indeed, good management can lead to better research. As a result, science management is developing into a professional discipline. Universities, research organizations and industry compete in a global market not only for the best scientific talents, but also for the best managers. In this forum we will discuss the principles of effective science management and leadership. We will introduce the innovative approach of the Helmholtz Association to systematically develop these skills within the German research area, and describe how these tools and methods are applied in everyday work. Finally, a representative of the R&D department of a global company will critically reflect upon the impact of management and leadership qualifications on career development, illustrate management practices in industry, and discuss whether they may constitute role models for academic research.

Use entrepreneurial tools to boost your career.

The entrepreneur is often described as someone who gets things done. By using the toolbox of the entrepreneur, you can become more focused, efficient and successful.  As a researcher you have acquired solid lab and publication skills, but you have also gathered “soft” skills in areas such as teaching, presenting and writing of funding applications. It is now time to make use of these transferable skills and develop them further. 

Developing these skills can add extra value to your research, or help you take the step and leave academia for an alternative career. The workshop will be opened with a talk on your career opportunities and the choices you have to make to change career path. We will then mix short presentations on entrepreneurial skills with creative exercises for hands on results. To conclude the session, a former researcher who has made an inspirational career journey, with transferrable skills in focus, will share her story. 

A new concept of a young researcher has emerged. Today, a successful early career scientist has to do brilliant research, publish in top journals, effectively communicate their work at conferences, and be actively involved in policy making, education and outreach activities. However, managing time and prioritizing these facets of a scientist can be challenging. During the International Polar Year, an international and interdisciplinary scientific programme involving more than 60 countries and 50,000 scientists, a new wave of highly enthusiastic early career scientists emerged, performing high-quality research and providing innovative ways for communicating science through education and outreach activities, while giving a voice to young polar researchers within major organizations on major issues. This session discusses how early career researchers are advancing high-level science, provide guidance on how to balance your time between science and outreach, and give examples on how young (european) scientists can have a strong voice in world science policies. To achieve such goals, we got together some of the most influential individuals in the world in terms of science, career development, policy and outreach.

Journals and peer-reviewed publications are still the most widely used channels through which research results are disseminated within the scientific community. ”The public” engages with science and research mostly through established media channels like newspapers, television and online services. However, social media and Web 2.0 tools are seemingly challenging the supremacy of editors, reviewers and science communicators. Blogging about science has become a new way of engaging “the public” directly with scientists while researchers are increasingly using such tools within their own communities for exchange or review purposes. The workshop focuses on the tools like Wikis, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and social networks and explores their potential and limits for communication and scientific exchange. Which opportunities do the new tools offer – for scientists, institutions and the public? How can Web 2.0 contribute to the process of knowledge production and how do people benefit from scientists blogging. In the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to discuss the benefits as well as the potential risks of Web 2.0 applications for opening the scientific process up to “the public” as well as their peers. In addition, participants will be shown practical examples. Based on these examples participants are invited to form their own opinion about, where and how to use such tools and how to handle the time commitment and quality control required for their maintenance.

The Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site (STS) in NE Kazakhstan was the first proving grounds for the testing of nuclear weapons by the former Soviet Union. From the first explosion in 1949 to the cessation of testing in 1989 over 450 tests were conducted in the atmosphere and underground at this site. Testing not only contributed to the global nuclear weapons fallout budget but also left a dangerous legacy of radioactive contamination on the surface of the test site and its surroundings.

 

In recent years international effort has been made to assess the radioecological status of the STS and to evaluate the dosimetric implications posed by long-lived radioactive fallout products to populations living in the vicinity. This has been prompted by local pressure to reclaim contaminated steppe lands for agricultural use and to facilitate the exploitation of important mineral resources such as gold and coal. Other concerns have extended to issues of nuclear security and non-proliferation including the risk of ‘dirty’ bombs.

 

In this session, we will present the main findings of a recently completed 6-year project, funded under NATO’s Science for Peace Programme, whose primary focus was on the identification and characterisation of areas of contamination and the determination of the pathways of radionuclide exposure to local populations. Three different speakers will address, in turn, the history of the STS, the science undertaken in the course of the project, and the human health consequences. An open forum (chaired by an international figure) with full audience participation will follow.

As we slowly emerge from the Great Recession, new models are emerging for bringing novel bioscience from the bench to the market. One model that is capturing the attention of investors and entrepreneurs in this field, as well as the big pharma firms that so urgently need innovative new biotech products to sustain growth, is the "micro startup" model. This model could also prove to be important for universities and nonprofit technology transfer offices, which stand to benefit hugely from the revenue and notoriety that they receive from royalties from successful life science products—IF these technologies can make the transition from scientific breakthrough to product breakthrough.