Conference: International Conference on Linguistics Communication

Ohio State University, The, Columbus OH

Investigators

Abstract

A critical part of doing science is communicating results to the general public in an effective manner. However, scientists often do not have opportunities for training in how to connect with the public and they are often unfamiliar with the range of methods that they could use to reach them. The purpose of the International Conference on Linguistics Communication is to bring together language scientists, their students, and expert science communicators with two core goals in mind: (1) To improve the public engagement skills of the scientists and (2) To connect academic scientists with a network of communication experts who have a proven interest in promoting language science. The conference is held completely online to keep the event cost-effective and to allow easy participation from scientists and communicators from around the globe. The scientists come from every level of seniority, from highly distinguished scholars to very junior students; moreover, they conduct research on a wide variety of language related topics. The professional communicators engage the public in many different ways, including writing magazine articles, running podcasts, creating video content, and doing in-person events at festivals and museums. The conference provides opportunities for the scientists to learn key skills involved in communicating with the public in different ways. It also provides networking opportunities to help scientists and professional communicators work together. In general, the conference aims to inspire scientists to value public communication, to encourage scientists to forge ties beyond their usual academic environments, and to expand the ways that language science results reach the general public. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.