SciComm 2020 was held online on August 14-16, 2020!
A CONFERENCE ON EFFECTIVE SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
SciComm is a conference dedicated to understanding and promoting effective communication of science to diverse audiences – including students of all levels as well as the general public – across all venues.
Hosted by UNL School of Biological Sciences
our mission
- Train scientists, educators, journalists and the public in effective science communication
- Disseminate cutting-edge research, tools, evaluation instruments, programs, and activities for science learning and evaluation inside and outside of classrooms.
- Forge new connections between university instructors, discipline-based education researchers, K-12 teachers, informal and formal science learning sites (e.g. museums, libraries), science learning researchers and evaluators, and science disseminators (e.g. science writers, film makers).
- Engage with the public, policy makers, and people who use science communication in a diversity of careers.
- Provide opportunities for practitioners of science communication to implement communication strategies and receive critical feedback.

Key Areas of Focus

Informal STEM Learning
Engaging students and the general public through informal activities conducted outside of the classroom.

Science Communication Research
Discovering the best methods to ensure that your audience engages with and retains scientific communications.

K-12 STEM
Supporting the effective dissemination of scientific information and investigative skills in K-12 classrooms.

Disciplinary-Based Education Research
Facilitating student comprehension and retention of scientific concepts.

Science and Media
Enabling collaboration between scientists and science communicators in today’s dynamic media environment.

Broader Impacts
Helping scientists determine the best way to expand the reach of their work.
Talks will be given on all things SciComm - formal and informal education, research, broader impacts, science and media, DBER, etc.
Register today for 2020's conference on August 14-16.
SciComm 2020 will offer a series of workshops, formal talks, an opportunity to present and receive feedback on your outreach activities and more!
effective communication.
Communicating Science for Learning and Engagement
A conference dedicated to understanding and promoting effective communication of science to diverse audiences – including students of all levels as well as the general public – across all venues.
Workshops
Your choice of two workshops led by top science communicators. One workshop on Flipgrid will be available to graduate student and postdoctoral registrants a week before the conference. The second workshop will be offered on Aug. 14 to grades K-4 teachers.
Talks
The conference will contain four keynotes, six featured speakers, and more than a dozen breakout discussions.
collaborations
Forge collaborations over Zoom during entertainment and networking on Friday and Saturday evenings.
SciComm 2020 Film Festival
A chance to present your research to the public and get feedback from conference participants.
bringing communicators together
SciComm was initiated as a one-day symposium in 2015 led by a University of Nebraska-Lincoln Program of Excellence Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Dr. Matthew Wilkins.
In 2018, UNL transformed SciComm into a two-day professional conference that attracted attendees from across the country. Following its success, Kansas State University asked to partner with UNL and the two universities are now working together to alternate the conference between campuses yearly. In 2019, SciComm was hosted by KSU. Now, in 2020, UNL is proud to host SciComm once again. We hope to make it the biggest and best SciComm yet!
Our goal is to make SciComm a leading conference for practitioners, researchers, and partners of science communication.
Join us at SciComm 2020!
Are you a scientist looking to expand your broader impacts? An educator hoping to improve your presentation of complex scientific ideas? A journalist focused on scientific research? SciComm 2020 is a conference designed to bring together a diverse group of science communicators for the purpose of collaboration, discussion, and dissemination of new ideas.
plenary speakers
Raven Baxter, also known as Raven the Science Maven, is a science communicator and molecular biologist who works to progress the state of science culture by creating spaces that are inclusive, educational and real and the Founder of STEMbassy, a science advocacy organisation.
Dr. Uché Blackstock is a thought leader and sought-after speaker on health inequities and racism in health care and the Founder and CEO of Advancing Health Equity.
plenary speakers
Andrew Revkin is founding director of the Initiative on Communication and Sustainability at Columbia University’s Earth Institute.
Dr. Christopher Volpe is the executive director and a founding board member of ScienceCounts, a non-profit organization devoted to promoting awareness and supporting science.