BU Research Blog

June 26, 2023

Researchers wanted for Community Buddies Programme

Knowledge Exchange, Public engagement ballen

The British Science Association (BSA) is looking for researchers to take part in their Community Buddies Programme, connecting with Community Leaders to drive innovative community-led science engagement.

The BSA’s Community Engagement Team has been training, connecting, and working with community organisers for the past eight years. More recently, they furthered their offer with the creation of the Community Buddies Programme, which connects Community Leaders with local researchers.

The programme grew in response to community organisers’ interest to partner with local science role models who can help develop their engagement activities and offer insights into research.

The programme aims to:

Create greater empathy and understanding between researchers and communities
Support researchers and communities to create authentic, mutually beneficial relationships with equal sharing of power
Increase the skills and capabilities of both researchers and communities to engage with each other

If you are interested in getting involved, please get in touch via the expression of interest form. Yetminster would be the nearest local partner.

Expression of interest form

Find out more about the Community Buddies Programme in this blog, which synthesised the learning from the first two years of the programme.

You can learn more about the programme of community engagement work here.

If you have any questions, please contact communities@britishscienceassociation.org

October 30, 2020

Apply for an Award Lectureship from the British Science Association

conferences, Funding opportunities, Public engagement, Training Adam Morris

Are you, or do you know, an exceptional early career researcher?

Every year the British Science Association asks for applications for the seven Award Lectureships available to early career academics who are skilled at engaging people with their research. These Award Lectures aim to promote open and informed discussion of science and related disciplines. Awards are available in seven different areas:

Social sciences
Engineering, technology and industry
Environmental sciences
Agricultural, biological and medical sciences
Physical sciences and mathematics
Digital innovation
Science and the arts

More information, including the application process can be found here:

https://www.britishscienceassociation.org/award-lectures

or you can contact Hannah at hannah.lawrence@britishscienceassociation.org with any questions.

The selected lecturers receive an all-expenses paid trip to the British Science Festival where they will present their lecture, as well as public speaking coaching and a £250 honorarium. There may also be other opportunities to present the Award Lecture at other science festivals in the UK.

The deadline for applications is 17.00 3 December 2020.

October 25, 2019

British Science Festival Chelmsford 2020: Calls for proposals now open

Public engagement ballen

Calls for proposals for British Science Festival 2020 are now open!

Taking place from the 8-12 September in Chelmsford and Essex, the Festival will be hosted by Anglia Ruskin University.

Each year, thousands of people come together to celebrate the latest developments in research and engage in open discussion about issues affecting our culture and society. Through a mixture of traditional and creative formats, it focuses on showcasing cutting-edge science and technology.

Festival proposals should be aimed at non-specialist adults (16+) with a broad interest in science. All events are free to attend.

There are two ways to get involved…

Award Lecture nominations

Are you, or do you know, a promising early career researcher?

Every year nominations are requested for the seven Award Lectureships available to promising early career academics, skilled at engaging people with their research. These Award Lectures aim to promote open and informed discussion of science and related disciplines. The selected candidates will have the opportunity to present their winning Award Lecture at the 2020 Festival. To get an idea of what it’s like to be an Award Lecturer, check out the blog from one of the 2018 winners.

Nomination deadline: 17:00, 6 January 2020

Open call for proposals

The open call is an opportunity for anyone to submit an event idea.

Festival proposals should be aimed at non-specialist adults (16+) with a broad interest in science. During the week, Festival events will take place in the daytime on the university campus, followed by events throughout the city each evening. To close the Festival, there will be a final celebration over the weekend. The programme is aimed at a range of formats from talks to drop-in activities and creative content that challenges perceptions of what science is and can be.

Please submit one proposal per event.

Proposal deadline: 17:00, 17 February 2020

More information about the above, including the application process and FAQs, can be found on the website

People who are thinking about submitting a nomination or proposal are strongly encouraged to chat with the Festival team before completing the form(s). If you’re interested please contact anna.woolman@britishscienceassociation.org

Alternatively you can contact Adam Morris (Engagement Officer) if you would like advice on planning or submitting your application or to discuss ideas.

And finally – a reminder about the upcoming UK Science Festivals Network conference taking place in London on the 19 November. Perfect for anyone working or interested in the science Festival, or wider engagement sector. More information and tickets available here

December 4, 2017

Get involved with the British Science Festival 2018

Public engagement Natt Day

Would you like to get involved with the British Science Festival 2018? If so, the call for festival proposals is now open for applications!

The British Science Festival is Europe’s longest standing science festival with a diverse programme of free events for the public to get immersed in and help them connect with scientists, engineers, technologists and social scientists. This year the BSF will be in Hull & the Humber from 11-14th September.

Proposals are now open for events exploring the scientific spectrum and beyond. Creative events and applications for drop-in activities are also welcome.

To find out more and submit your application, click here. Proposal deadline if 9am 19th February.

Don’t forget, if you have a proposal and would like to work with our Public Engagement team on it, you can! Just email our Engagement Officer Natt Day (nday@Bournemouth.ac.uk) to arrange

December 1, 2017

Nominate an Award Lecture for British Science Festival 2018

Public engagement Natt Day

Do you know or work with a promising early career scientist? If so, why not nominate them for an Award Lecture at the British Science Festival 2018!

The Award Lectures aim to promote open and informed discussion on issues involving science and encourage scientists to explore the social aspects of their research. Previous Award Lecturers include the likes of Maggie Aderin-Pocock and Brian Cox.

Awards are available in seven different areas:

Margret Mead: Social Sciences
Isambard Kingdom Brunel: Engineering, Technology and Industry
Charles Lyell: Environmental Sciences
Charles Darwin: Agricultural, Biological and Medical Sciences
Rosalind Franklin: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Daphne Oram: Digital Innovation
Jacob Bronowski: Science and the Arts

The selected lecturers will receive an all expenses paid trip to the British Science Festival in Hull to present their talk as well as a £250 honorarium and an invitation to the Festival dinner.

To find out more information and apply, click here. Deadline for applications are 9am 2nd January 2018.

November 13, 2017

Public Engagement – why keep it on campus?

Public engagement biddled

The British Science Festival was a fantastic opportunity to see the weird and wonderful places you can engage people in science! Locations for events ranged from lecture theatres on campus to a karaoke bar down in the lanes… certainly a wide range of options to attract anyone and everyone.

All the different locations dotted around Brighton

It’s a good idea to look into the unique places around Bournemouth that might be better for your research than on campus – you can see in the map that the British Science Festival had a large majority of their events in the city centre instead of up on the University grounds. This made it easier for visitors of the city to find the events they wanted.

It would be great for both community and BU to see all of Bournemouth town used to engage the public in the Festival of Learning – whether it is a night time event to keep the fun going to the early hours, or an event closer to the station to help the public find it’s location without all the buses. When thinking of an event you can run for the Festival of Learning, just remember – why keep it on campus?

If you have any ideas and want to run them by us at the Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, send us an email and we will get back to you as soon as we can!

November 30, 2016

British Science Festival 2017 – Call for event proposals

Public engagement Joanna Pawlik

Would you like to bring cutting edge science to a wider audience at the British Science Festival?

Taking place in Brighton from 5-9 September, the Festival will be co-hosted by the Universities of Brighton and Sussex, with a focus on showcasing cutting-edge science.

Thousands of people come together to celebrate the latest developments in science and to engage in open discussion about issues that affect our culture and society.

The Open Call for proposals is now open to academics, individuals and organisations. Proposals should be aimed at non-specialist adults with a broad interest in science.

The deadline for submissions is 9am Monday 27 March 2017. To submit a proposal for events please fill in the proposal form.

To find out more about British Science Festival click Here.

August 22, 2016

Public Engagement in the sunshine!

PG research, Public engagement Naomi Kay

We recently headed down to a very sunny Boscombe for a day spent talking about science as part of their bustling Saturday market. Pitching up in between two amazingly fragrant food stands we spent the day talking to the community about two research projects with the potential to change lives as part of a British Science Association and Royal Society of Chemistry series of events known as Science in the City.

The idea of Science in the City has been to take science into highly deprived communities and talk to people about research who wouldn’t usually engage with us through events such as Festival of Learning. Working with University of Southampton (UoS) we submitted the bid in December 2015 and were successful in being picked to host an activity as part of the 2016 round of funding and approached Boscombe Market for a venue to let us talk to the community.

Keen to take the opportunity to share some of our high profile research we were especially pleased to be joined by Oleg Fryazinov and Mark Moseley who have been highly involved with the award winning SHIVA project which enables disabled children to design and 3D print objects using a simple interactive system that can be controlled using either touch or eye tracking software. This project has recently received funding through HEIF5+1+1 to expand the project further and work with new schools. Currently they are working closely with the Victoria School in Poole and may of the objects seen in the image below where designed by their students (unfortunately not the dinosaur as the software isn’t quite up to this yet!).

As well as BU’s research we also took an activity from UoS’s public engagement Roadshow. David and Alex, two PHD researchers from the university joined us for the day to talk to people about the technology behind hydrogen fuel cells and how they have the power to revolutionise our lives and minimise the amount of unclean energy needed to run our cars, buses and lorries. As well as a demonstration of the fuel cell in action they also were helping the public understand how catalysts could be used to reduce the amount of energy you need to put into a reaction and how coating a cheap substance (in our case copper pennies) with a catalytic material (a brass coating made by coating the penny in zinc and heating to produce an alloy) can reduce the costs involved with using them.

November 20, 2013

‘Communicating your science workshop’ – organised by the British Science Association

Public engagement eloring

The British Science Association are inviting researchers from BU to attend a one-day training workshop which will develop their public engagement skills. This one-day workshop addresses the growing need for researchers to be confident at communicating and understanding the impact that their research has on society.

How does your research have an impact on society? And how does social media engage the public? Are there any ways of communicating your research better?

What are the benefits of attending the workshop?

It will help you to gain confidence in engaging the public with your research
It will also help to develop your understanding of the place of science within science and the impact that your work has on society.
It’ll make you aware of existing public engagement platforms
You will be able to learn about how social media can be used to communicate science to the public
You will be able to find your research ‘hook’ – what is the most exciting thing about what you do and your research?

The workshop will consist of practical activities which will help you to explore your work’s impact on society and improve your communication skills. It’ll also give you guidance on how to engage with different audiences.

The fee will include all resources, a full day’s tuition with experienced practitioners and refreshments during the day.

Date: 09.12.13

Time: 10:00 – 16:00

Where: Dana Centre, London

Cost: £50 (+VAT)

This one-day workshop is suitable for MSc (research) students, PhD, and early post-doc researchers from all aspects of the sciences.

For more information, including how to book, please visit the British Science Association website.

June 25, 2012

British Science Festival: Mini-guide published and opportunities to work at the Festival

Festival of Learning, Public engagement Becca Edwards

The British Science Association has just published details of the activities that will be taking place during the British Science Festival in Aberdeen 4-9th September. Can you can find the guide here.

The really exciting programme include appearances from famous faces (such as Brian Cox and Bill Bryson), talks (e.g. Offshore Emergencies: Medicine in Extreme Conditions), workshops (e.g. How to Solve Crime with Mathematics), evening events (e.g. the Science of Cocktails), family events in the city (e.g. the Science of Fireworks), family events at the beach (e.g. the Cosmic Dome), trips/tours (e.g. Sense-Walking) and exhibitions (e.g. Bubbles and Balloons).

Obviously, it is not that easy to attend the festival if you live locally to BU, but if you are interested in public engagement it is well worth looking at the programme. The mini-guide could also provide useful inspiration if you are planning to apply to run a public engagement activity at the Festival of Learning, here at BU.

Also, if you are an Early Career Researcher, or know of others that would benefit from the opportunity of getting involved at the Festival, the British Science Association is recruiting Festival Assistants. More details can be found here. Please note that the closing date for applications is 30th June.

If you are planning to go to the Festival, please contact Becca in the RDU on redwards@bournemouth.ac.uk – we would be delighted to know which aspects of the Festival of you think worked well and why.

February 29, 2012

British Science Association Media Fellowships for Researchers

PG research Fiona Knight

The British Science Association run a Media Fellowship scheme for scientists, social scientists, engineers and clinicians to spend the summer working with national news journalists to improve their communication skills and media awareness. It’s a fantastic opportunity for researchers at any stage of their career to spend 3-8 weeks working with print, TV and radio hosts including the BBC, Guardian and Times to produce accurate, well-informed stories about developments in science.

Be behind the headlines!

Scientists, social scientists, engineers and clinicians can experience life in the heart of the newsroom by applying for a British Science Association 2012 Media Fellowship.

Spend 3-8 weeks this summer working with hosts including the BBC, Guardian and Nature to produce accurate, well-informed news about developments in science, and work alongside the UK’s top science editors in the British Science Festival Press Centre. Return to work with media confidence, contacts, and first-class communication skills.

“I came away brimming with ideas, skills and advice for my researcher peers and I met some amazing people with the same values and drive as me. It was extremely interesting, educational and fun I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in the world outside their research bubble.” Media Fellow

The British Science Association welcomes applicants from universities, institutes and industry across the UK and application is online at www.britishscienceassociation.org/mediafellows before 11 March 2012.

Applications are welcome from researchers at all stages of their career and for eligibility criteria, experiences from past Media Fellows, and the online application form go to www.britishscienceassociation.org/mediafellows

Sponsored by RCUK, Wellcome Trust, BBSRC, STFC and the IET

February 28, 2012

British Science Association Media Fellowship

Sally Gates

The British Science Association run a Media Fellowship scheme for scientists, social scientists, engineers and clinicians to spend the summer working with national news journalists to improve their communication skills and media awareness.

It’s a fantastic opportunity for researchers at any stage of their career to spend 3-8 weeks working with print, TV and radio hosts including the BBC, Guardian and Times to produce accurate, well-informed stories about developments in science.

We welcome applicants from universities, institutes and industry across the UK and application is online at www.britishscienceassociation.org/mediafellows before 11 March 2012.

Tagged / british science association

Researchers wanted for Community Buddies Programme

Apply for an Award Lectureship from the British Science Association

https://www.britishscienceassociation.org/award-lectures

British Science Festival Chelmsford 2020: Calls for proposals now open

Award Lecture nominations

Open call for proposals

Get involved with the British Science Festival 2018

Nominate an Award Lecture for British Science Festival 2018

Public Engagement – why keep it on campus?

British Science Festival 2017 – Call for event proposals

Public Engagement in the sunshine!

‘Communicating your science workshop’ – organised by the British Science Association

British Science Festival: Mini-guide published and opportunities to work at the Festival

British Science Association Media Fellowships for Researchers

British Science Association Media Fellowship

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