LSC was well-represented at the Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST) Conference in Rotterdam, Netherlands

LSC’s team of science communication researchers at PCST. Pictured from left to right are graduate students Isabel Villanueva, Ashley Cate, Mikhaila Calice, Becca Beets, LSC Professor and Chair Dominique Brossard, and graduate student Anqi Shao.

LSC’s prominent presence was once again on display at this year’s Public Communication of Science (PCST) Conference in Rotterdam, Netherlands. From keynote speeches on how to connect research and practice in science communication to multiple research paper presentations in the main program, LSC faculty and students demonstrated that our program is the leader in science communication! This year’s 17th PCST Conference, had over 800 attendees and the main theme was ‘Creating Common Ground.’ The theme signified the role and value of science communication as boundary work that connects scientists, engineers, policymakers, business leaders, and citizens.  One faculty member and five LSC students presented at PCST. LSC Professor and Chair Dominique Brossard was the faculty member on the LSC team at PCST and the graduate students that presented were Becca Beets, Mikhalia Calice, Ashley Cate, Anqi Shao, Isabel Villanueva – all Ph.D. students or candidates in the LSC department. Additionally, every scholar benefited from the departmental funding for travel and presented on different topics related to their research. 

LSC Professor and Chair Dominique Brossard gave a keynote speech at PCST.

Members of the LSC department research interests cover a broad spectrum of science communication topics, ranging from anything from environmental issues to emerging technologies, and the diversity of their research was reflected in a wide range of PCST sessions that LSC members were part of.   “I am so grateful to LSC donors that help us provide financial support to our graduate students to travel to these international conferences to present their work. Professional development opportunities such as these are an important component of graduate education,” says Dominique Brossard, LSC professor and chair.     Keynote address:  Brossard, D. (2023, April 14). Finding common ground from the science of science communication.    Peer-reviewed presentations:  Beets, B., & Brossard, B. (2023, April 12). Uncertainty across the sciences: Exploring how experts from different fields experience scientific uncertainty. [Conference presentation].  Beets, B., & Newman, T. (2023, April 14th). Functional, experiential, and symbolic connections to science: A framework for exploring the brand of science. [Conference presentation].  Calice, M., & Brossard, D. (2023, April 13). Finding common ground to support the local energy transition: Perspectives on community energy management in Wisconsin, USA. [Conference presentation].  Cate, A., Newman, T., & Middleton, L. (2023, April 12). The unique challenges and opportunities for communication and engagement on basic science. [Conference presentation].  Shao, A., & Wang, Y. (2023, April 12). Cutting “long COVID” stories short: Did news outlets oversimplify the uncertainty in medical research about post-COVID conditions? [Conference presentation].  Villanueva, I., Li, N., Brossard, D., Jilk, T., & Van Matre, B. (2023, April 13). Prompting reflection on visual art mitigates political division on the perceived relevance of climate change. [Conference presentation].  Villanueva, I., Li, N., Brossard, D., Jilk, T., & Van Matre, B. (2023, April 13). Seeing COVID-19 through art: Examining the potential effects of visual art on social media engagement and information recall. [Conference presentation].    – Written by: Jocelyn Cao, LSC M.S. ’23 Published: April 2023