«L'hanno detto alla radio!» : comme la sciena va en l'aire

Of all forms of media, radio can play a central role in the modern process of science communication, exploiting its unique nature of closeness and intimacy. Radio over the years has been able to reach a large number of people, to diffuse knowledge, to mirror the important changes and social movements that have taken place. This is particularly true when dealing with science popularisation at local level. Community radio stations represent an interesting place where the discourse of the media and the discourse of the public merge together at a deeper level. Their main characteristics being free access and public participation in production and decision-making, community radios have a prominent role in the promotion of the public debate on topics of risk communication in science, such as biotechnologies or health matters. The network of municipal radio stations of Catalonia is presented as an interesting example where confirmation of this hypothesis can be found

Translating tools and indicators in territorial RRI

Introduction: By a series of calls within the Horizon 2020 framework programme, the EU funded projects intended to deploy Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) at a territorial level, in regional research and innovation ecosystems. This paper presents efforts to document and evaluate the achievements in TRANSFORM, one of these projects. Methods: Evaluative inquiry and theoretical reasoning. Results: Noting the need for a general principle to be interpreted, adapted and translated in order to be rendered meaningful at a local level, we studied precisely these multiple territorial translations of RRI, the organizational and institutional orderings with which they co-emerge and the challenges that come with these translations. An important shared feature is that RRI work does not start from zero, but rather builds on pre-existing relationships and repertoires of collaboration. The RRI project is hence a way to continue ongoing work and follow pre-set purposes, aims and objectives, as a form of “maintenance work”. In this very human sense, RRI is deployed with a logic of care in the regional context, while the Horizon 2020 calls and proposals above all are formulated in a logic of choice, to be assessed by indicators. Discussion: We warn against undue standardization of RRI by toolification and use of quantitative indicators, and recommend that RRI performance is monitored by methods of evaluative inquiry.publishedVersio

Mutual learning exercise on citizen science initiatives: policy and practice. First topic report: introduction and overview of citizen science

This publication provides background information on the Mutual Learning Exercise on Citizen Science. It is written with a science policy audience in mind and provides an introduction and details of the modus operandi for the MLE. It first provides a brief overview of the activities that are part of the field of citizen science. It then covers the available information about participation, and the place of citizen science within the wider context of public engagement with science, including an analysis of Special Eurobarometer 516. It also looks at definitions, typologies, and best practice guidelines. Finally, it looks at the place of citizen science within European R&I funding programmes

Mutual learning exercise on citizen science initiatives: policy and practice. Fifth thematic report: scaling up citizen science

This publication addresses meanings, dimensions, models and approaches/strategies of scalability in citizen science as well as drivers, success factors and challenges of (up)scaling citizen science projects and initiatives across Europe. It provides a multi-dimension qualitative definition of scaling up, the MLE CSI-PP Responsible and Inclusive Scalability Framework, and eight key areas of action for policymakers aimed at supporting the (up)scaling of citizen science projects and initiatives across Europe. Ultimately it argues that (up)scaling should be a responsible and inclusive process, context- and domain-dependent, aligned with the logics of the projects/initiatives, driven by common scientific questions and common social challenges, and built on proven impact, related to science and scientific literacy, inclusion, regulatory frameworks, and matters of concern (e.g., environmental, societal)

Mutual learning exercise on citizen science initiatives: policy and practice: final report

Over the past decade, great advances have been made in applying innovative participatory and inclusive research practices across a wide range of domains. These have involved increasing numbers of citizens in monitoring, observing, and co-researching societal issues such as climate change impacts on the environment and public health, sustainable mobility, and plastic pollution in rivers and oceans. Important outcomes have been achieved, from fundamental scientific discoveries1 to data that support evidence-informed policy

A methodological approach to co-design citizen science communication strategies directed to quadruple-helix stakeholders

Citizen Science (CS) can help change the paradigm of science communication. To test this, 38 ongoing CS projects from Italy, Portugal and Spain have been selected by the H2020 NEWSERA project to act as pilots in the development of communication strategies, specifically targeting stakeholders in the quadruple helix. The projects, together with stakeholder representatives and science communication and journalism professionals participated in a series of workshops — #CitSciCommLabs — where communication strategies were co-designed, using adapted design-thinking methods. The innovative methodological approach is hereby presented and can be an inspiration for others willing to implement improved communication strategies to target different stakeholders.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Contours of citizen science: a vignette study

Citizen science has expanded rapidly over the past decades. Yet, defining citizen science and its boundaries remained a challenge, and this is reflected in the literature-for example in the proliferation of typologies and definitions. There is a need for identifying areas of agreement and disagreement within the citizen science practitioners community on what should be considered as citizen science activity. This paper describes the development and results of a survey that examined this issue, through the use of vignettes-short case descriptions that describe an activity, while asking the respondents to rate the activity on a scale from 'not citizen science' (0%) to 'citizen science' (100%). The survey included 50 vignettes, of which five were developed as clear cases of not-citizen science activities, five as widely accepted citizen science activities and the others addressing 10 factors and 61 sub-factors that can lead to controversy about an activity. The survey has attracted 333 respondents, who provided over 5100 ratings. The analysis demonstrates the plurality of understanding of what citizen science is and calls for an open understanding of what activities are included in the field

The WYP2005 for physics on the road to extinction (Italian original version)

From exhibitions to theatrical performances, from fireworks to video games, countless events and ventures have been held all over the world in 2005 to mark the occasion of the World Year of Physics (WYP2005). The year that is drawing to a close has brought physics out into the streets and University campuses, but in a few cases physics has even invaded theatre stages and art museums, it has involved musicians and even architects. The worldwide objective was to highlight a science that has more and more need to communicate its close connections with society, its involvement in themes that are vital for the present day but above all for the future, like the frontiers of medicine, the reduction of global pollution and the search for new energy sources. This focus tries to discover, country by country, the events that have accompanied the World Year of Physics. But this will also be an attempt to reply to a question on the very nature of this type of event: “do we really need it”? Is a World Year of Physics really necessary and, above all, is it effective