Category: Informal & formal learning

Research and practical projects that link science communication and education.

How to stop worrying and love climate action with Climate Fresk – An evaluation study 

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

Climate change is certainly not the easiest topic in science communication, as I have learned since I started practising this discipline. Communicators aiming to engage people about the climate crisis must address participants who are experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions. Anxiety, fear, anger, grief, plus an impending sense of doom. These same emotions are shared by communicators too. It is challenging to lift participants and ourselves out of this low mood and feel hopeful, empowered, and ready to act. Hard, but not impossible.   

Serious games have been explored for years as a strategy to engage people in learning without the typical barriers of formal education. One example of a gamification approach in climate science communication is Climate Fresk: a 3-hour collaborative game based on the IPCC reports and created in France in 2015. Since then, the activity has spread to many countries, including the UK, with more than 2 million participants worldwide.  

The activity is structured into four phases (reasoning, creativity, review, and debrief), using gamification to boost learning and empower the participants to embrace sustainable and climate-friendly practices. Participants are provided with cards on the causes and effects of climate change and must arrange them on a table in a cause-and-effect order. They are encouraged to be creative and acknowledge their emotions. After the game, they gather to share and discuss how to put what they felt and learned into practice.  

The participants are not alone in this journey. They are guided and supported by facilitators (known as “freskers“), former participants who have undergone training to become part of the backbone community of Climate Fresk. There are currently more than 100,000 freskers worldwide, and they are generally not climate scientists themselves. Depending on their level of expertise, the facilitators run workshops in person and online across many settings (general public, schools, universities, businesses), either as volunteers or professionals.

Despite its solid structure and clear objectives, it is not straightforward to assess whether attending a CF workshop has an impact on the participants. The CF organisation also lacks a systematic way to assess its activities. This is when evaluation enters the chat. As part of my dissertation for the MSc Science Communication at UWE Bristol, Margarida Sardo and I planned to evaluate the impact of Climate Fresk on the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours towards climate change of both participants and facilitators, by using a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods (observation, interview, and surveys).

We first focused on the participants of two workshops targeted at the general public. From our observation of the participants during the activity, they showed interest and engagement in the game and shared their emotions, which were generally quite low at some point. No need to despair though: after the game, participants discussed meaningful ways to contribute to climate action and sustainability, which also improved the overall mood. The topics they mentioned included both individual actions (changing diet, travelling sustainably, green investments) and collective action (political and economic engagement).

A few participants also agreed to be interviewed individually a week after the workshop. The aim was to obtain a first-hand account of how they experienced the activity and whether it affected them. The transcripts were analysed to identify common themes and patterns in the answers, based on the Generic Learning Outcomes. The results were mixed. The participants liked the activity and its collaborative nature, and also reported increased knowledge of climate change, especially the ability to see the bigger picture of the climate crisis. However, they also claimed the activity simply reinforced their previous beliefs about solutions to the climate crisis. They also felt their sense of agency on the matter did not change.

There are many potential reasons behind these contrasting results. All participants interviewed already had a high degree of climate awareness before attending the activity; in a sense, it was a bit like preaching to the choir. This self-selection produced a highly knowledgeable, already‑committed cohort of participants, reducing the potential for measurable change. Furthermore, it is unrealistic to expect a 3-hour activity to produce a lasting attitude and behavioural shift on such a complex issue. In this case, greater knowledge did not lead to greater empowerment, but that might not be true in settings with no participants self-selection.

Given the long-term impact of the activity on participants, we could not measure it after just a week, so Margarida and I designed a survey to engage the UK facilitators community, with both quantitative and qualitative questions about their facilitation experience, motivations to keep facilitating, what climate action they implemented as a result of CF, and the role of the organisation in their commitment to sustainability. Our goal was to assess whether CF can foster sustained action among that audience. It turns out it does, but indirectly.  

Belonging is the game changer. Of the 38 respondents, around 90% reported that being part of the facilitators community was a source of inspiration and commitment to climate action and sustainability, including ethical banking investments, political activism, and systemic shifts in their professional work environments. Facilitating workshops also provided many freskers with a sense of purpose. However, some respondents aligned their answers with the deficit model (educating or informing the public) rather than a truly engaging approach (a two-way discussion between facilitators and participants).

Our findings suggest that climate communication initiatives may achieve their greatest impact not simply by increasing knowledge, but by creating spaces where people can reflect together, support one another, and sustain their commitment to action over time.

The CF organisation has come a long way in demonstrating the impact of serious games in climate change communication. To improve its outcomes, the activity should focus less on imparting knowledge and more on providing practical advice, offering ongoing support, and building a community centred on shared commitment and continuous learning. The climate crisis certainly seems a daunting challenge, but we can count on the friends we make along the way.

By Giorgio Graffino, MSc Science Communication graduate (2026) at UWE Bristol. Communicating about climate, weather, and the environment. Fighting the climate crisis one content at a time.

Science Communication, Speculation and Schnitzels: Exploring Science-Art Collaborations in Stuttgart and Berlin

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

In April 2025 I travelled to Germany for my MRes project, research I am undertaking as part of the UWE Science Communication Unit. There I explored both interdisciplinary practice as a whole and more specifically, scientist’s personal experiences of Science-Art collaborations, which will in turn, inform my research project.

I’ve had an interest in Science Communication since I studied my Biomedical Science degree, and after 10 years of working in molecular biology laboratories I decided it was time to start a new career path to get my mind thinking in new and interesting ways. In June last year, having just returned from a trip to Berlin, one of my favourite European cites, I saw my MRes project advertised on the UWE SCU LinkedIn page; it involved art (which I love), science (which I also love!), talking to people (I’m a sociable gal) and potentially, a trip to Berlin… it felt like this opportunity was tailored for me. So, I took the leap, I applied for the MRes project, got the spot and gleefully re-entered higher education last September.

I was over-the-moon to be researching Science-Art, with the project itself exploring the experiences and impacts upon scientists who take part in Science-Art (or Sci-Art as its often described) collaborations. After our first couple of meetings my supervisors and I decided it would be best to carry out qualitative data collection via semi-structured interviews, asking questions about how these scientists felt during such collaborations, if it has affected their thinking at work and what their relationship with artists were like. I planned on using these interviews to step into the scientists’ shoes and understand their perspective of these unique phenomena, using this to potentially inform future Science-Art collaborations.

Schloss Solitude Stuttgart

Some of the interviews were carried out online but some happened in-person in Berlin, with my co-supervisors at the Schering Stiftung, a Science-Art foundation in Berlin, kindly funding this part of the endeavour. They also organised for me to go to a weekend of workshops in Stuttgart, at the beautiful Schloss Solitude site, an organisation that hosts academics from many disciplines, (including arts and sciences) to collaborate on interdisciplinary projects.

The workshops were discussing the concept of ‘Metabolic Futures’; how society, economy and ecology is driven by the transformation of materials, with talks, walks, discussions and artworks covering industrial farming, waste generation and circulation and changes in our foods systems. It was very much an interdisciplinary venture, and I found it immensely interesting and inspiring; meeting people from many fields and even managing to grab a cocktail out with a group of them after a wonderful, pickled food dinner on the final evening.

Metabolic futures
Lake Lab
Schering Stiftung

After the workshops in Stuttgart, I took the train to Berlin to conduct my interviews and attend the opening of Emilia Tikka’s Science-Art exhibition, ‘Johtingeaidnu – The Path Within’, at the Schering Stiftung foundation. I was based at the Schering Stiftung gallery, but interviews took place in locations across the city including the Botanical Gardens, a laboratory by a huge lake and a cute café in the Winsviertel district. It was a delight to hear how much joy these scientists gained from working with artists and I’m excited to dig deep into the analysis of the data collected.  

Botanical Garden and Museum Berlin

The opening night of ‘Johtingeaidnu – The Path Within’ was a buzz of activity, with speeches, fizz, pretzels and of course, the main attraction, the artwork itself. There were several pieces including two short films, an illustration and a projection in a Lavvu, a type of tent used by the Sámi people, all beautifully made and thought provoking. The pieces speculate about shared memories of ancestral migratory paths between Reindeer and humans via epigenetics. As a former geneticist I loved exploring this area more conceptually than I was used to in the laboratory, I shared a similar sense of wonder and joy those scientists felt when they were working with artists, their work appreciated from a new angle.

Exhibition Johtingeaidnu – The Path Within at Schering Stiftung

I finish my MRes in October, and although my workload is high, with my science communication research covering art history, sociology and philosophy, the support of my supervisors Dr David Judge (UWE), Professor Emma Weitkamp (UWE) and Dr. Katja Naie (Schering Stiftung) means I’ve very much relished the experience and hope to continue in this direction on my new career path.

By Stephanie Wakeman, MRes Science Communication student

Exploring engineering and sustainability through Minecraft: Science Hunters resources

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

Laura Hobbs and Sarah Behenna

In 2020, the long-running Science Hunters programme launched Building to Break Barriers, an engagement project to support children from under-represented groups to explore engineering through Minecraft.

Science Hunters has a well-established history of communicating environmental sciences through the popular computer game, and this was its first large project focusing specifically on engineering aspects, supported by a Royal Academy of Engineering Ingenious Award. Despite facing significant challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which affected environmental engagement projects across the UK, the project rapidly adapted, moved the majority of delivery to online activities and met or exceeded all targets by January 2022.

In September 2020, Science Hunters partnered with the DETI Inspire Programme to design a new session – the West in Minecraft – through the Building to Break Barriers project. Minecraft Clubs for children with Special Educational Needs in collaboration with Lancaster University, and another for Looked After Children were supported to continue during the pandemic. Schools were engaged virtually and children were able to participate in a Summer Challenge. Additional funding via a Biochemical Society Diversity in Science grant saw the project further extended into 2022, to deliver an event for children Special Educational Needs in collaboration with Loughborough University.

Legacy resources resulting from the project include two practitioner guides, on engaging children with STEM using Minecraft and available editions of Minecraft, and 15 topic-based resources, one of which was developed in collaboration with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Engineers participating in the project contributed to selection of topics and design of content, as well as delivery of sessions and analysis at the end of the project indicated that topics naturally aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Results were presented at the International Conference for Sustainable Ecological Engineering Design for Society, winning a Chair’s Award.

Example of a solar crop dryer designed in Minecraft. The Building to Break Barriers Solar Crop Dryer session was developed with UWE engineer Ceri Morris (image: Daisy Bristow, UWE graduate engineer).

Expanding on these outcomes, Science Hunters: Engineering for Sustainable Societies launched in 2023 with further support from the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Ingenious Award scheme. In this project, the focus was explicitly on exploring the Sustainable Development Goals, again supporting children from under-represented groups and using Minecraft. Sessions were delivered in schools and communities, including setting up several new Minecraft Clubs in disadvantaged areas of Bristol, and at science festivals. Views of teachers on incorporating the Sustainable Development Goals into engineering and environmental engagement activities using Minecraft were gathered and analysed to support the project’s delivery (results can be found in Education Sciences) and we are currently exploring the perspectives of community group leaders.

The project produced a further 12 topic resources, and a supporting resource pack and resource guide produced as outcomes of the project. The topic resources can be used as standalone activities, or together as outlined in the resource pack and guide, to support children to design and develop their own sustainable future communities.

So far, these Science Hunters engineering projects have produced more than 30 resources, freely available on their SCU webpages. Feedback from both projects has been overwhelmingly positive. Engineers have gained training and experience, while children reported that they enjoyed the sessions, learnt about engineering and engineers and wanted to learn more about engineering. Minecraft Clubs reached multiple groups of children, with feedback reflecting how valuable this was to them and their parents/carers. Teachers responded enthusiastically to the projects, citing the efficacy of Minecraft in engaging children, the benefits of seeing women in STEM roles and accessibility for children with Special Educational Needs. In Engineering for Sustainable Societies in particular, they highlighted the need to engage them with the Sustainable Development Goals and positive impacts, both now and in their futures, on their understanding of engineers and engineering and the role they play in society.

Building to Break Barriers resources can be accessed at: https://go.uwe.ac.uk/BuildingToBreakBarriers

Engineering for Sustainable Societies resources can be accessed at: https://go.uwe.ac.uk/EngineeringforSustainableSocieties

For more information please contact sciencehunters@uwe.ac.uk

Further information on the current and past projects undertaken by the Science Communication Unit can be found here.

Young people become inventors at children’s book themed STEM workshop

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

On June 14th, Joshua Warren from the Science Communication Unit (SCU) Inspire Sustainability team at UWE Engineering, inspired a class of Year 3 students from Cabot Primary with a STEM workshop based upon the children’s book, ‘Izzy Gizmo’ by Pip Jones. 

The workshop was a collaboration between the Inspire Sustainability team and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre, as part of the development of a stage-show based upon the book. 

‘Izzy Gizmo’ is a young global majority girl with a passion for inventing all sorts of wacky machines.  In the book, she discovers that engineering is all about finding success by trying again and again, as her inventions don’t always work first time.  One day, she finds an injured crow on her way home, and sets about trying to invent something to allow her new friend to fly again.

The children in the workshop, were delighted to be joined by the author, Pip Jones.  Pip introduced the children to the character of Izzy, and also talked to them about how inventions have changed their own worlds over time.  The children then were challenged to think like Izzy and design and build a flying machine for the crow, named ‘Fixer’.   

All students were awarded the ‘Izzy and Fixer’s Award of Invention!’ by Pip for attending the workshop and had a really inspiring day building and inventing!

Learn more about the Bristol Old Vic here: https://bristololdvic.org.uk/

You can read about and order the Izzy Gizmo book here: https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/Izzy-Gizmo/Pip-Jones/9780857075130

To find out more about this workshop or the other outreach from the Inspire Sustainability team, please email engineeringourfuture@uwe.ac.uk

Driving policy around the COVID-19 pandemic

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on
Policy briefs exploring the impact of COVID-19 on people and the planet have been published by researchers from UWE Bristol’s Science Communication Unit.

During the global pandemic, children’s lives were changed by both the presence of the virus and measures put in place to control it e.g., closure of schools and play spaces, move to online learning, and social distancing. The Voices in a Pandemic project (VIP-CLEAR) highlighted the importance of capturing children’s voices, which are often missed, about the impacts of these mitigations on their lives.

The interdisciplinary research team from UWE Bristol (which included 3 members of the Science Communication Unit) used arts-based methods to capture the experiences of children in six schools in socially disadvantaged areas of Bristol.  The first of these activities asked them to ‘map their world’ as the country emerged from the third national lockdown. This process gave children the time and space to reflect on this period of their lives. Their drawings showed how diverse their experiences were; some children enjoyed spending time with their family, but others found it difficult being separated from key support networks, and friends and family members. It was particularly hard for those who were dealing with existing challenges around space, food, money and resources. It is likely that children will experience further social shocks (e.g., pandemics, climate change) and the mapping policy brief outlines ways in which schools, community services, local government and public health teams can support children to cope with these intangible threats.  A primary book and teacher’s notes have also been co-created by the project artist in collaboration with the academic researcher team.   ‘Learning to Live with Fog Monsters’ is available digitally and in hardcopy, and aims to engage children with these complex topics.

The Future Brief COVID-19 and the environment: links, impacts and lessons learned, meanwhile, brings together research that highlights how the risk of zoonotic disease and pandemics is increased through human activities such as industrialised agriculture and land-use change. The policy brief, produced by Science for Environment Policy (based in the Science Communication Unit) for the EU Directorate-General of the Environment, also highlights how climate change and the wildlife trade are increasing the risk of emerging infectious diseases that may jump from animals to humans.

The brief emphasises the importance of the One Health Approach, which recognises that environment, wildlife and human health are interdependent. Since the risk of zoonotic disease increases where humans encroach on wildlife habitat, global hotspots of high risk have been identified by researchers working in this field. Minimising the risk is another task; this will rely on actions that improve the sustainability of farming, land use and our interactions with wildlife.

The brief also offers an overview of findings on the environmental impacts of the pandemic – from changing air quality as the world locked down, to increased volumes of single-use plastic and PPE littering beaches. Mass action can change behaviour to be kinder to the environment – can we harness the shock wave of COVID to inspire a green recovery? The brief was produced before the war in Ukraine, which has of course had huge effects on the energy landscape in the EU, but the message stands that addressing climate change and environmental degradation should not be overshadowed by economics but be integral to a sustainable future.

Although national and world events in 2022 have turned our attention away from the pandemic and its effects, the VIP-CLEAR project and the Future Brief show that it is crucial we reflect on the events of the last three years, to learn lessons, to understand and support those affected, and look to a resilient future.

Amanda D Webber and Caroline Weaver

What we can learn from Easton – 3 indicators of community climate action

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

by Mic Palmer

A Youth Climate Café that took place in St Marks Church in Easton in April 2022 invited young people across Bristol to come and share in climate discussions and activities.  It was organised by UWE Bristol researchers, community members and charitable groups in Easton.

Audience engagement activities on the day included an immersive climate dome, seed pot making, presentations, conversations, an air pollution workshop and walk, and a fast fashion dance. The creative input was supported by Baggator Nexus, St Mark’s Baptist Church, Peace of Art, Easton Community Members, CCC-Catapult Youth Action partner group, Quartet Community Foundation, the UWE Community fund as well as the UWE Bristol Enterprise, Knowledge Exchange and Public Engagement fund. 

Apart from providing a much-needed opportunity for young people to hear, see and talk about climate change and what to do about it, three key insights emerged from the event that seem to indicate when community climate engagement works at its best – when it sees the local connection, listens to people disproportionally affected by climate change and builds a resilient community ready for action.

St Marks Road, Easton, Bristol. photograph by Josh Hart

See the local connection

The first plus of the climate café event was that it brought the focus back to local issues – the impact that can be directly felt. Air quality is an important issue for the Easton community. A talk and guided walk pointed out the problems in this area and how a community has come together to learn and influence change. Through a citizen science project, Easton residents are getting involved in air quality sensing, gathering data and interpreting what it means. They are making connections between the presence of particulate matter in the air with health issues experienced by friends and family.

To help bridge the digital gap between residents in Easton – one of the most deprived areas in Bristol- and air quality scientists, STEM ambassadors and UWE Bristol have been collaborating with BMCS and Baggator to use data on Air Pollution and Traffic data from Saaf Hava (‘clean air’). Stuart Phelps (Baggator) presented how this all connected at the Climate Café:

Saaf Hava is a Citizen Sensing project. Twenty sites across Easton will measure Air Pollution, Temperature, Humidity; with room for expansion. These twenty sites will make up over 1.6 square kilometres and may perhaps be the most comprehensive Citizen Sensing network in the UK. Telraam traffic counters have been added to this via UWE Bristol’s WE COUNT programme and introduced via STEM Ambassadors at Baggator.

Telraam site showing St Marks Road traffic data

According to Maryan Abdirahman, Baggator’s Data Analyst & User Researcher, gathering air quality data in Easton’s streets and communicating results to the people who live there is proving to be useful climate action. It has already led to greater awareness, change of habits and a better-informed lobbying of political decision-makers in Bristol.

Maryan Abdirahman

Communicate with everyone

A second insight that makes Easton community climate actions impactful is involving people not currently featuring prominently in public climate debates. Saaf Hava, the Citizen Sensing project mentioned before, is a joint initiative between RADE and the Council of Bristol Mosques and as such gives a voice to unheard BAME and working-class people in environmental debates.

Indeed, a little known fact is that some Easton mosques have been engaging with climate change in a deep and meaningful way.

Page 3 of the Muslim’s Guide the Climate Change, by Easton Jamia Masjid


The Easton climate café (hosted in St Marks Baptist church!) invited different audiences to contribute their views to an event and take note of each other, young Muslim women, families, older citizens, small business owners. Workshops held in preparation to the event connected young people living in Easton with university students and university researchers were facilitated by ‘Peace of Art’, a group of Muslim women creating Street Art.

Andalusia Academy creative work

Get ready to take climate action

Climate change is rooted in actions taken by the more affluent inhabitants of this planet, and the most disadvantaged groups are often far more affected by its negative impacts. Paradoxically, climate engagement tends to increase with education and income. To arrive at a more balanced debate and move things forward, a greater representation of disadvantaged and lower-income voices in climate debates seems crucial. We need to understand how race, ethnicity, class and gender issues can interact to influence/prevent climate change engagement. Perhaps the engagement formats we tend to use prevent access for many, and so we hear far less from people far earlier or far more affected by climate change.

Self-reflection is important but might open the doors to time-consuming bickering, for example  “middle-class climate warrior” has now turned from a description to an insult. Many activists know that the class divide threatens to derail what can only be achieved together, and Triston Cross writes “the more climate activism is codified as middle class and bourgeoisie, the more its composition inevitably will be. It’s self-fulfilling”. Clearly, new ways of engagement need to be explored, and perhaps the actions taken by Easton groups indicate how things can be done differently.

Media coverage often ignores what takes place quietly in our communities. Under-represented groups may already have explored and implemented working solutions, quietly. ‘Green’ practices, passed on from generation to generation, may have originated in necessity, not idealism: living through hard times, periods of shortages, mending and making do, using as little resources as possible. Perhaps we can still learn a lot from each other.

Regarding climate change, most of us understand the urgency to act. The pressures of rising living costs in the UK are getting more real every day. But how we go about taking action seems as important as the fact that we do take action. This means to address social and political exclusion. Climate activism needs to be inclusive and from this perspective, Easton is a perfect place to start.

Dr Mic Palmer is Senior Lecturer in Digital Media at UWE Bristol

Further Reading:

See Easton’s air quality data mapped here.

Find traffic data here and here.

A toolkit and training for youth climate social action

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

A toolkit and training for effective youth climate comms and social action

UWE Bristol’s Science Communication Unit (SCU) is launching a new Youth Climate Action Toolkit to empower young people to act on things that matter to them. The toolkit is suitable for 16-24-year-olds, and we encourage you to please download and share the kit with any (young) person you think may benefit from these tools!

The newly developed toolkit has been produced in partnership with young people from the Avon Schools Eco Network, following pilot training held with the DETI Inspire team in the School of Engineering.

The pilot involved 12 young climate activists who learnt how to be more effective with their own campaigning, whilst forming the foundations of this new toolkit to support other young people. As well as empowering young people to act, the toolkit aims to speak with and engage diverse audiences that may not otherwise take part (e.g., through filmmaking, persuasive writing and interactive stalls, etc).

What is inside the toolkit?

To allow any young person to use the materials independently of the training, the toolkit has been designed to stand-alone or complement the training. It consists of four sections:

  • Section one: lays the foundations for effective team working, with a skills audit for young people to assess their baseline entrepreneurial skills for sustainability, and time set aside to define their action project based on need
  • Section two: encourages readers to understand different worldviews – including those from different sides of the political spectrum, and people in positions of power and influence
  • Section three: drills down into the communication methods, allowing readers to select the right method for their audience and to prototype and test their communications
  • Section four: encourages readers to reflect on their learnings, re-assess their skills and evaluate the impact of their communications

Training in the community

The SCU team have also been delivering the Youth Climate Communications to local colleges and youth groups. The training is modular, which allows it to be adapted to suit the needs and interests of the organisations involved.

The training is already being modified to suit the needs of one college, where they have aims to support a more sustainable educational environment by delivering to their students over a two-week period at the end of term. Students will vote on a priority for action within their college and then work in teams, with the support of a coach, developing a communications and behaviour change campaign which could then be delivered in the following term.

The young people’s experience of the programme is being evaluated to better understand whether their attitudes, skills and behaviours relating to sustainability, change as a result of the training. Findings will be shared on this blog later this year.

For empowerment programmes

Meanwhile, aspects of the training are also being delivered to participants of more established empowerment programmes, such as this year’s Catalyse Change programme, Bristol Education Partnership’s Climate Challenge and The Global Goals Centre’s Groundbreakers awards, with the toolkit also featuring in the Groundbreakers’ action pack.

A future aim of the project is to deliver the training online to youth groups and educational establishments across the country, and beyond, with training provided to educators to deliver the programme themselves. For a taster of what this training could look like, head to our YouTube where you can access the social media component of the training.

Where it all began

The training emerged from conversations among the SCU and colleagues about the desire to share our knowledge on climate communications and active citizenship more broadly, so when a funding opportunity arose the Unit was quick to pull together a team to make their dream a reality. The all-female team consists of academics and researchers in disciplines ranging from human geography, engineering, and environmental anthropology – to building physics and entrepreneurship. What unites them is a common interest in supporting young people to develop the skills and confidence they need to take action about things that matter to them.

This training is the first offering from UWE’s Climate Action Hub, also established by the SCU. The Hub is a place for researchers and students to connect with communities for climate action. There is already some work on campus doing just this, such as the children’s workshops delivered by DETI Inspire and Inspire Sustainability, but this is the first time training has been put in place to support the University and communities to do more.

To find out more about the in-person and online toolkit or to connect to the Climate Action Hub, email project manager Sophie Laggan.

To download the toolkit click here.

This post was first published on the Engineering Our Future blog on 29 June 2022.

Youth Climate Communications: a pilot

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

On 24th February, 12 young people, aged 15-24, headed to UWE Bristol’s Prototype and Play Lab, in the School of Engineering, for a training day in Climate Communications. Passionate about addressing the climate and ecological emergency, and eager to learn and connect with likeminded people (figure 1), the delegates came from across the Bristol area, with representation from five different schools/colleges and from the University.

Figure 1 Why the young people took part in the training.

The young people were recruited through the Avon Schools Eco Network, CCC-Catapult and through the researchers’ student networks, with the researchers full-knowing this was already a captive audience with some experience in climate communication (figure 2). While the training was free, with lunch vouchers provided and travel costs covered if needed, in exchange the young people were required to provide detailed feedback on the sessions. This feedback would then allow the researchers to adapt and evolve the training, so it could be replicated, converted into different formats (e.g., e-learning and guidebooks) and scaled to other youth groups and schools regionally, nationally and internationally.

Figure 2 The types of communication the young people have tried before.

The training emerged out of the collective interest of researchers at UWE Bristol, from the Science Communication Unit, FET, ABE and DGEM, keen to share their knowledge with and empower the younger generation. The first to live through climate breakdown since a young age, over half of young people experience some form of climate-related anxiety (Hickman et al. 2021). While some level of anxiety is a natural response to an external threat (Clayton, 2020) and can act as a motivator (Taylor, 2020), too much can be debilitating (Hrabok et al. 2020). To steer young people away from overwhelm, timely action, forethought and trust in science are needed (Manzanedo & Manning, 2020). And according to Climate Outreach, to resonate with young people we, as adults, need to validate their negative thoughts while avoiding overly optimistic communications, and provide resources that can alleviate their anxiety[1].

Drawing on this research, and the interests of young people, the Science Communication Unit shaped the programme of activities to build trust in the need for well-thought through evidence-based communications, tailored to audience that have the most power and influence to make impactful pro-environmental decisions.

Using the example of solar panels, Dr Laura Fogg-Rogers and Research Fellow Sophie Laggan explained that why one household may buy solar panels for environmental reasons, others will do so out of economic/energy security, while others still will do so because their neighbours did – because it is the ‘norm’. These different ways of viewing the world shape how we make decisions, and it is only through meeting people where they are at that we can forge meaningful dialogue and promote pro-environmental change.

The participants ran with this idea in a role-playing exercise where they tried to convince someone ‘not like them’ – and in a position of power and influence – to install solar panels on the roof of their school. With a bit of context about what makes their partner tick, the participants were able to tap into the other person’s values and use it to their advantage.

Following lunch and a tour of the Campus’s community garden led by a UWE Bristol student, the group returned for an engagement activity on passive houses with Dr Deborah Adkins. Each table were given a wooden replica of a typical UK house and asked to stick post-its on the areas they thought could be improved for sustainability, everything from solar panels to insulation and green roofs. The task was accompanied by a short presentation, allowing the participants to learn more about sustainable housing.

Deborah’s session was followed by a more depth explanation of the value of physical engagement activities, by Sophie, with the chance for each participant to prototype their design for an engagement activity based on the issue that mattered to them, be that local food or slow fashion. Their issues of concern were formulated in the opening session of the day – “Start with the why”.

The day was concluded by top tips by Josh Warren on filmmaking on a budget, before the young people were set to task on recording their own short film on a sustainability topic. The group enjoyed watching each other’s films and spent the last few minutes of the day reflecting on how valuable the day was for their activism and general understanding of people ‘not like them’.

Analysis of the before and after surveys, revealed some promising findings, which the project team will now monitor in future training activities. Perhaps most significantly, the young people’s negative thoughts (scared, angry, concerned, powerless, guilty, confused) all reduced following the training (except for mournful) and positive thoughts increased (empowered, hopeful, optimistic and determined) (figure 3).

Figure 3 How young people feel about the climate and ecological crisis (asked before and after the workshop).

Confidence in communication skills also increased. For instance, 100% felt confident/very confident in engaging their audience after the training, compared to just 11% (N=1) before (figure 4).

Figure 4 Before and after confidence levels in communication skills.

Nearly all participants rated the activities highly, with the eco house activity and ‘start with the why’ activity receiving the highest praise (figure 5). The average scores were attributed to either a lack of time to fully explore a topic or a lack of scaffolding to support the pupils to come up with good ideas.

Figure 5 Young people’s rating of the main activities. (None rated less than average (below 3 out of 5)).

Lastly, survey respondents were asked if anything was missing from the day. Suggestions included training on social media, graphics and poster design and engaging children, as well as time to provide more examples of communication best practice.

Next steps

Shortly after the training day the team found out they were successful in their bid to the HEIF FET-FBL Award. This now means that the training can be replicated again, in person, to different youth groups, with a focus on from more diverse backgrounds, and that they can create e-learnings and printable toolkits. This work sits under the umbrella of the Climate Action Hub at UWE Bristol, which acts as a space for researchers to connect with communities interested in tackling the climate and ecological emergency. To facilitate this exchange, the Hub is looking at setting up a Staff Network to allow staff the time to build these connections. If you are interested in connecting to the Hub in any way, or have ideas on how it should operate, then please contact Sophie.laggan@uwe.ac.uk.

In the coming weeks we will publish a blog written by one of the participants, who will share their experiences from the day.

This training was led by Research Fellow Sophie Laggan, Associate Professor Dr Laura Fogg-Rogers, Senior Lecturer Dr Deborah Adkins and Josh Warren.

By Sophie Laggan, Research Fellow in the Air Quality Resource Management Centre at UWE Bristol.

References:

Clayton, S., 2020. Climate anxiety: Psychological responses to climate change. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 74, p.102263.

Hickman, C., Marks, E., Pihkala, P., Clayton, S., Lewandowski, R.E., Mayall, E.E., Wray, B., Mellor, C. and van Susteren, L., 2021. Climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change: a global survey. The Lancet Planetary Health, 5(12), pp.e863-e873.

Hrabok, M., Delorme, A. and Agyapong, V.I., 2020. Threats to mental health and well-being associated with climate change. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 76, p.102295.

Manzanedo, R.D. and Manning, P., 2020. COVID-19: Lessons for the climate change emergency. Science of the Total Environment, 742, p.140563.

Taylor, S., 2020. Anxiety disorders, climate change, and the challenges ahead: Introduction to the special issue. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 76, p.102313.

Climate Outreach, 2020, Britain Talks Climate, 18th November 2020. URL: https://climateoutreach.org/reports/britain-talks-climate/

[1] Britain Talks Climate, a research project by Climate Outreach, segmented the UK population into different categories according to their views on climate change. 13% of the UK population identify as “progressive activists”, to which a large proportion are young people.

The Importance of Being Interested

Author Science Communication Unit | Posted on

Robin Ince is now renowned as “the science guy” of comedy. From The Infinite Monkey Cage on BBC Radio 4, to his huge cabaret-style shows with Professor Brian Cox and a whole host of scientists and comedians performing at venues as big as the Royal Albert Hall. With all this, he is possibly one of the biggest names in science communication in the UK and has recently written a book, The Importance of Being Interested, where he explains his long journey from being a child bored by science, to a comedian whose interest in science has grown to be career-defining.

The first time I saw Robin Ince was back in 2008 in a dark basement venue below a cinema in York where I regularly attended comedy gigs as an undergrad. At that point, his shows didn’t have the primary theme of science, but there was interesting bits of evolutionary theory peppered in to his set which I’d never heard in a comedy set before. I was a linguistics student myself, and a stand-up comedy nerd who had long ago decided, despite being quite good at it, that my love of science was very much secondary to my love for language. But something about Robin’s interest and enthusiasm got to me, and among his shows and a host of public engagement events around the 200th Anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, I started to wonder if I hadn’t made a terrible mistake in rejecting a future in science.

I distinctly remember at this time lamenting to my personal tutor in the linguistics department that I was struggling with feeling like I should have gone in to evolutionary biology. I remember her considering this before asking me if I knew evolutionary linguistics was, in fact, a thing. The study of how humans evolved to communicate using language. I didn’t, but as soon as I was aware I was hooked and ended up doing my master’s degree in language evolution and ultimately a PhD on the topic. In that moment, I found my “thing”, and I can’t imagine my life without it now. In many ways, I think I only made the choices I did because of Robin Ince raising evolutionary topics into my consciousness at a time when it wasn’t too late. In science communication, we often talk about the objective of raising the “science capital” of children to try and get people to feel like science is “for me” at an age where it can still affect their subject and career choices. I feel like Robin Ince pushed me into that space at the very last second when it could have still affected my career. And now, here I am, a lecturer in science communication who researches, among other things, science comedy.

Recently, I had the pleasure to interview Robin Ince to mark the publication of his new book. In the interview, we discuss in depth the role of science fiction in engagement with science, the role of comedy and cabaret in the communication of science, and attitudes towards offense in both science and comedy. You can listen here:

By Dr Hannah Little, Senior Lecturer in Science Communication at UWE Bristol.

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