@article{5ef6316e096e4a96a30a9b5c46017f00,
title = "Engaging rural Australian communities in national science week helps increase visibility for women researchers",
abstract = "During a week-long celebration of science, run under the federally supported National Science Week umbrella, the Catch a Rising Star: women in Queensland research (CaRS) programme flew scientists who identify as women to nine regional and remote communities in the Australian State of Queensland. The aim of the project was twofold: first, to bring science to remote and regional communities in a large, economically diverse state; and second, to determine whether media and public engagement provides career advancement opportunities for women scientists. This paper focuses on the latter goal. The data show: (i) a substantial majority (greater than 80%) of researchers thought the training and experience provided by the programme would help develop her career as a research scientist in the future, (ii) the majority (65%) thought the programme would help relate her research to end users, industry partners or stakeholders in the future, and (iii) analytics can help create a compelling narrative around engagement metrics and help to quantify influence. During the week-long project, scientists reached 600 000 impressions on one social media platform (Twitter) using a program hashtag. The breadth and depth of the project outcomes indicate funding bodies and employers could use similar data as an informative source of metrics to support hiring and promotion decisions. Although this project focused on researchers who identify as women, the lessons learned are applicable to researchers representing a diverse range of backgrounds. Future surveys will help determine whether the CaRS programme provided long-term career advantages to participating scientists and communities.",
keywords = "Altmetrics, Career advancement, Career development, Equity, Research, Social media",
author = "{2016 Catch a Rising Star Consortium} and Hardy, {Margaret C.} and Desselle, {Mathilde R.} and Jennifer Allen and Andrews, {Katherine T.} and Barrington, {Dani J.} and Danielle Borg and Kaylene Butler and Rebecca Colvin and Cooper, {Tarni Louisa} and Emily Furlong and Honor Hugo and Elecia Johnston and Gwenllian Iacona and Carly Kenkel and Caitlin Kuempel and Amie Khosla and Danette Langbecker and Jacki Liddle and Diana Lucia and Vanessa Lussini and Lynn Nazareth and Alison Peel and Megan Saunders and Meaghan Smith and Velasquez, {Johana Tello}",
note = "Funding Information: Ethics. This study adheres to the guidelines of the ethical review process of The University of Queensland. The research was categorized as negligible risk research according to the criteria outlined in the National Health and Medical Research Council National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (updated in 2015). Data accessibility. Our data are available in Figshare: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.4867103. For questions or additional information contact the programme coordinators via email (ScienceStarsAU@gmail.com) or on Twitter (@ScienceStarsAU). Authors{\textquoteright} contributions. M.C.H. and M.R.D. designed the project and obtained funding. M.C.H. analysed the data and drafted the manuscript. Members of the Consortium were involved with the design of the survey and acquisition of data. All authors made contributions to the revision of the manuscript and gave final approval of the published version. Competing interests. The authors declare no competing interests. Funding. This Inspiring Australia initiative was supported by the Australian Government as part of the 2016 National Science Week (NSWGA-97). Education Queensland and the local community also provided financial and other support for the programme in Kowanyama. Acknowledgements. We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we gathered and worked, and the local communities in Queensland who hosted researchers for the programme. We are indebted to Kathy McLeish (ABC News, across radio, television, and online programmes), Rhianna Patrick (ABC Local Radio), Bernadette Young (612 ABC Brisbane Radio), and Michael Lund (The Conversation) for volunteering their time at the Queensland Scientists Meet the Media panel during the training workshop. National media metrics for the project were provided by MediaHeads (Sydney, New South Wales) and The University of Queensland (Brisbane, Queensland). Geoff Crane and the National Science Week Team at Questacon, the National Science and Technology Centre (Canberra, Australian Capital Territory), provided support and insight during the programme. We are grateful to Rebecca Bates, Head of Curriculum at Kowanyama State School, Nicole Sherlock, Principal at Kowanyama State School, Education Queensland, and the Kowanyama community for their financial support of the programme. Funding Information: Distinct from formal educational instruction, National Science Week in Australia (www.scienceweek. net.au) is a week-long public campaign to celebrate science and technology: {\textquoteleft}It provides an opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of Australian scientists to the world of knowledge. It also aims to encourage an interest in science pursuits among the general public, and to encourage younger people to become fascinated by the world we live in{\textquoteright} (https://www.scienceweek.net.au/faq/#q1). Held every August since 1997, the programme is supported by the Australian Government and a number of national partners. In 2016, more than 2000 activities took place with more than 1 million participants in science events across the country. The goal of National Science Week is to reach the general public, not just science enthusiasts already engaged with STEM. As part of this effort, the National Science Week programme works with a range of traditional media outlets to highlight Australian science and innovation in August. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017 The Authors.",
year = "2017",
month = oct,
day = "18",
doi = "10.1098/rsos.170548",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "4",
journal = "Royal Society Open Science",
issn = "2054-5703",
publisher = "The Royal Society",
number = "10",
}