Science Communication – beyond the daily news
Welcome to our annual conference
Once again SCANZ is offering all those involved in communicating science another exciting and stimulating conference that will benefit both them and their employers. It is a unique opportunity to learn about the latest developments in communicating science from people who are leaders in their field.
Science without communication is like toast without vegemite. The late Professor Alan McDiarmid was a strong supporter of science communication and once told winners of the McDiarmid Awards that …."their science was of little value unless it was properly communicated".
The 2009 SCANZ conference will be up to the usual high standards which the organization has set over the years. View the programme and you cannot help but be impressed. The conference will begin with a special function on the Sunday evening hosted by the Vice Chancellor of Massey University, Hon Steve Maharey. The conference itself is a great mix of stimulating keynote speakers set alongside a suite of practical workshops. These workshops will cater for people from a wide range of science areas including Universities and CRI's, health, regional councils and government policy making. There will be sessions on social media, what is happening internationally with science communication and getting science across to the public.
The keynote speaker will be Andrew Waterworth, Executive Producer of Natural History New Zealand. Andrew has more than 30 years experience in television internationally and his recent credits include Megastructures, Inside Kung Fu Inc and Colossal Squid. Natural History New Zealand is highly regarded internationally and produces material for audiences throughout the world. NHNZ has done much to showcase New Zealand science to the world.
Other keynote speakers include Professor David Parry, the 2009 recipient of the Rutherford Medal, Christian Elson from National Geographic and Barry Fox a former Vice President of the American broadcasting network CBS. Peter Griffin from the Science Media will report back on an international conference on science communication he recently attended and Greg Carlyon from Horizons Regional Council will talk about how science is being applied in the field for the benefit of local communities.
A highlight of the conference will be a cocktail function and then dinner at Te Manawa, the museum and science centre in Palmerston North.
For the last five years SCANZ has held a very successful annual conference. These events have provided a unique opportunity for everyone involved in communicating science – be they journalists, public relations professional, scientists, academics, policy makers, museum staff, science educators, local authority staff and health professionals, to hear some top-line speakers and to network with their peers.
Palmerston North is a city where science has always been very strong. Massey University is one New Zealand's leading learning institutions and one which offers a vast range of academic programmes. Also based on the Massey Campus are a number of Crown Research Institutes and in the city there is the very highly rated local museum and science centre Te Manawa.
Venue
The Sport and Rugby Institute on the Massey Campus is the venue for the conference. Not only does this offer fabulous rooms in which to stage the conference, it has value for money accommodation which can be booked by those attending the conference. Details of this are available when registering.
Programme
The programme is now available for view or download.
Cost
The cost of the conference is $240 and includes the conference dinner and pre dinner function at Te Manawa.
Every endeavour has been made to keep the registration cost as low as possible with some of SCANZ cash reserves applied to the cost of the conference to keep registration at a reasonable level. Sponsors have helped us reduce our overheads.
Sponsors
Massey University, Horizons Regional Council, and Te Manawa have generously supported the conference but there are still opportunities for other organizations to assist. SCANZ would like to especially thank the Vice Chancellor, Steve Maharey for his personal support for this conference.
Accommodation
There is limited accommodation available at the conference venue (the Sport and Rugby Institute) and you can book this through the registration process. If you wish to stay in other accommodation in Palmerston North there are a range of options which can be viewed by going to the Destination Manawatu website.
How to register
You can register online.
Thanks
This year's conference has been made possible by a group of dedicated science communicators who have given their time and expertise to make this event possible. The team who have assisted are: Lindsey Birnie, Justin Brownlie, Iona Boase, Peter Burke (conference co-ordinator), Bette Flagler, Stephanie Gray, Peter Griffin, Christine Ross, Miriam Sharland, Philippa Sargent, Sarah Siebert, Terry Tacon, Emma Timewell.
Annual General Meeting
As you can see on the programme, some has been set aside to have a brief discussion about the future of SCANZ. It will not be an AGM as such because we will not be able to prepare accounts and sort out administrative matters by then. We will be able to give you a financial statement. Before that meeting a paper setting out a proposed strategy for the organization will be posted on this website and will be discussed at the meeting. If you have any views on what SCANZ should do or could do better, please contact Peter Burke (peter.burke@horizons.govt.nz)