the-BA : BA calls for culture change

18 March 2005
The BA calls for change: recognition and reward for scientists engaging with the public, and a climate of greater openness and public consultation on science issues.

The BA welcomes the publication in National Science Week of the survey on 'Science in Society', carried out by MORI on behalf of the Office of Science and Technology and the Council for Science and Technology’s (CST) report on ‘Policy through dialogue’. The time is ripe to act upon the huge public appetite for greater access to scientific information and more meaningful involvement in those key science issues which affect our lives.

We urge action on two fronts in response to these reports:

a culture change in which it is part of a scientists' normal professional activity to explain and discuss his or her work in public forums, and in which scientists’ involvement in engaging with the public is given due recognition and reward by scientists themselves and their funders
an increasing climate of openness and responsiveness among policy-makers to public input that complements and extends science-based evidence, and an increased capacity nationally for the public to engage with scientists and policy-makers on issues that interest or concern them.

At the BA, our single-minded focus is public engagement. We exist to provide opportunities for scientists and lay audiences to connect face to face through our innovative Science in Society programme or via the media through the vast coverage generated from well-established cultural initiatives such as the BA Festival of Science and National Science Week. Since we first opened for business in 1831 we have constantly worked to support the scientific community to engage with society and in doing so we find ourselves today positioned at the centre of the public engagement arena.

Against this informed backdrop we identify 4 key areas in the light of both publications:

A genuine public resonance

49% of adults hear too little information on science
79% say that scientists should spend more time discussing the implications of their work with the public

The survey also shows that people believe that the single most important group with whom scientists should communicate their research is the public itself, and that scientists are one of the most valued sources of information, support or advice about science (coming second after the media). There is evidence of a real public ‘want’ for greater and enhanced involvement with science and scientists.

A matter of training and confidence

Three in four people think scientists should listen more to what ordinary people think, and 31% feel strongly about this

Are those scientists who participate in science communication activities talking but not listening? The survey clearly shows that we do not exist in an anti-science culture, yet the public feels distant from the process. We believe that the time is long overdue for scientists to be actively encouraged by their employers and funding bodies to engage in dialogue about their work and in doing so should be supported in and rewarded for doing this. It should be part of a scientist's normal professional activity to explain and discuss his or her work in public forums. We recognise that not all scientists want to be in the public domain but all should have a duty to actively support their colleagues who are. We identify that effective training in contemporary science communication practice is vital to achieving this.

A need to embrace public values in a timely fashion

81% of adults feel the public should be consulted on decisions about scientific developments

The survey shows that nine out of ten people know little or nothing about public consultation in science and some view it as simply an exercise in PR with no obvious link between the outcomes of dialogue and if or how this has informed policymaking. Additionally, the qualitative research demonstrates that new science developments often emerge in the media after they have happened, not before, and participants commented that they should be given information earlier. As the survey identifies there has been little consultation on science at a national level to date. However, if public attitudes are to be taken seriously and greater public consultation in science is to follow then we strongly urge that the public be consulted in a timely manner, so that their input is meaningful and can actually add value to the outcomes. We heartily support the recommendations from the CST’s ‘Policy through Dialogue’ report in this regard, though we stress that dialogue processes should not be set solely in a top-down manner; there is both room and need for bottom-up approaches to issues-based discussion .

Most importantly we believe that there should be utter clarity from the start as to how such consultative processes actually link to policymaking. Trust is mutual; it can only be built through openness and honesty.

A call for greater openness

The survey highlights an increase in public concern over the last two years regarding the commercialisation of science. It is the emerging areas of science that require dialogue but how does this equate with the intellectual property, security and business agendas of industry? These tensions are barriers to openness and are major contributing factors to public perception that science takes place in secret with a ‘lack of accountability’ and that scientists continue to innovate with no consideration of the consequences of their activities. We support the recommendations in the CST report to elicit a change in culture across government. In our campaign to open up science, we aim to develop an openly accessible ‘opinion hub’ or information sharing mechanism which will enable us to capture and share public priorities and concerns about science on a national and evolving basis.

The BA has been awarded a new Sciencewise project grant for the citizen x-change. This will combine elements of two contrasting types of dialogue process, top-down and bottom-up, the citizen x-change will provide a policy-focussed approach to engagement that will give non-scientists and scientists an opportunity for a voice on science and technology, as well as other issues of concern.

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