Partners in Science: A Suggested Framework for Doing Community-based Science

Evidence suggests a growing gap between science and society. Assessments of science literacy reveal a decrease in public understanding of science. Surveys of public opinion reveal that the public values scientific discovery and trusts scientists less than they did only a decade ago. The impact of Hurricane Katrina and the controversy over climate change suggest that scientists' ability to predict events outpaces society's efforts to prepare for them.

Educational research, in both formal and informal settings, illuminates some of the dynamics that contribute to this gap. From this research, the factors that inhibit participation and application can be grouped into three broad causes: accessibility challenges, cultural differences, and a gap between scientific goals and community priorities.

Many of these challenges can be addressed by working with communities to develop an integrated program of scientific research, education, and community action that addresses community priorities and invites community participation at every stage of the process from defining the question to applying the results. This approach is often place-based because of the link between geography and community, especially in regards to natural phenomena, but community can be defined beyond geography. In the spectrum of ways to engage the public in scientific research this approach of “co-creation” is the most work intensive and risky, but promises the greatest rewards in terms of application.

This talk will explore several examples of co-creation of science including collaborations with tribal communities around climate change adaptation, work in the Louisiana Delta concerning land loss, and explorations of the link between weather and disease in Africa. I will articulate some of the challenges of working this intensively with communities, and suggest a general framework for guiding this kind of community-based science.

Wider application of this model of intensive collaboration will help us diversify our field, ensure the use and usability of our science, and help strengthen public support for and acceptance of scientific results. The talk, therefore, will also offer some ideas for scaling up this kind of research including suggestions for training and rewarding future scientists and presenting ideas for networking individual efforts.