Changing the Face of Science: Lessons from the 2017 Science-a-Thon

Studies have shown that over 2/3 of Americans cannot name a living scientist. This disconnect is a concern for science and scientists, considering the large role of public funding for science, and the importance of science in many policy issues.

As a large-scale public outreach initiative and fundraiser, the Earth Science Women's Network (ESWN) launched “Science-A-Thon” on July 13, 2017. This "day of science" invited participants to share 12 photos over 12 hours of a day, including both personal routines and professional endeavors. Over 200 scientists participated, with the #DayofScience hashtag trending on Twitter for the day. Earth scientists represented the largest portion of participants, but the event engaged cancer biologists, computer scientists, and more, including scientists from more than 10 countries.

Science-A-Thon builds on the success and visibility of other social media campaigns, such as #actuallivingscientist, #DresslikeaWoman, and #ThisIsWhatAScientistLooksLike. Importantly these efforts share a common goal, by providing diverse images of scientists we can shift the public perception of who a scientist is and what science looks like in the real world. This type of public engagement offers a wide range of potential role models for students, and individual stories to increase public engagement with science. Social media campaigns such as this shift the public perception of who scientists are, why they do what they do, and what they do each day. The actions and conversations emerging from Science-A-Thon included scientists talking about (1) their science and motivation, (2) the purpose and need for ESWN, and (3) why they chose to participate in this event increased the reach of a social media campaign and fundraiser.