Engaging adult audiences
We are all users of chemistry. And we all feel the impact of it in our lives whether we notice it or not. Therefore shouldn’t we all feel entitled to discuss it and how it affects us?
Well, according to our recent Public Attitudes to Chemistry (PAC) research, this is not the case. 58% of women and 45% of men agree that they don’t feel confident enough to talk about chemistry, and only 23% of people indicated an interest in the topic.
This suggests that many people consider chemistry to be something reserved for experts, rather than something we can all be a part of. This is a peculiar phenomenon that we don’t often observe in other areas of culture.
For example, the vast majority of us aren’t professional footballers. However, this hasn’t prevented us from admiring, discussing, and in some cases feeling part of, the recent 5000-1 Premier League title winning achievements of Leicester City Football Club. So if we all feel entitled to be part of that conversation, why should discussions about chemistry only be reserved for those who consider themselves to be professional?
What we do know is that encouraging people to take part can be difficult. The confidence that any individual has to talk about chemistry is based on their knowledge and understanding of, and attitudes to, the chemical sciences. This can vary dramatically, and so we need to be aware that there isn’t a single method for effectively engaging all audiences.
Those who are neutral: demonstrating the relevance of chemistry
The PAC research told us that 51% of people feel neutral about chemistry, and this surprised many in our community. We expected people to perhaps be scared or concerned; but hadn’t really considered that they might just have no emotional connection to the topic at all. It doesn’t make them feel anything, and this is indicative of a void in people’s engagement. They don’t have specific examples of how chemistry impacts them, so when the topic is raised they revert to memories and feelings from school. A negative or neutral experience at school can lead to feelings of, at best, indifference in adulthood or, at worst, fear and insecurity that translates into a general lack of confidence in discussing the subject.
These feelings of neutrality provide us with exciting new opportunities for public engagement. We no longer need to presume that our starting point should be to overcome a negative mind-set, and instead can focus on filling the void in people’s engagement with positive examples of chemistry that are tangible and relevant.
A number of our initiatives can help us do this.
Chemical Landmarks
Our Chemical Landmark Scheme recognises sites where the chemical sciences have made a significant contribution to society’s health, wealth, or quality of life, through our blue plaques. Recently we have emphasised their public visibility, using them as beacons to emit relevant and accessible information to the community, and choosing wording that makes them meaningful to nonscientists.
We were recently honoured to award a blue plaque to Kent Science Park, recognising the inspirational achievements of Sir John “Kappa” Cornforth. We were also delighted that Sittingbourne library, in the town where Cornforth lived for many years, agreed to host a plaque to recognise his influence.
By placing the human stories of chemistry in places where people can stumble across them, we believe we can build people’s emotional attachment to chemistry and their confidence to discuss it.
Science and the City
We partner with the British Science Association, an organisation whose mission it is to support, grow and diversify the community of people interested and involved with science. Through our collaborative Science in the City programme we deliver events in spaces that people attend as part of their day-to-day life and wouldn’t necessarily associate with science.
In 2015 we delivered 12 high quality science engagement events, with one held in each of the nine UK RSC regions. The settings included a fruit and vegetable market in Leeds, a shopping centre in Belfast and Hull City's football stadium on match day. This year, with support from the Garfield Weston Foundation, we are able to increase our number of events, to deliver greater impact across the UK.
Those who are suspicious: understanding their concerns
As well as engaging the surprising number who consider themselves to be detached from chemistry, we also want to encourage discussion with those who are suspicious of the topic. This requires a different approach. Although these people feel quite well informed about chemistry and are interested in finding out more about specific developments, many have the perception that chemistry is “unnatural”, and that manmade chemicals pose a danger that natural chemicals do not.
Many may also have underlying concerns around the economic, social and political power structures surrounding science in general, and chemistry in particular. Whilst we need to emphasise that chemists work for the good of humanity, and that these power structures are kept in check by other structures, we must understand that people have these concerns for a reason. They are backed up with evidence from a range of sources and must be appreciated rather than dismissed. We are not always right, and our audience is not always wrong, and if we approach our engagement with this mind-set, we are unlikely to see much difference in people’s thinking.
Those who are engaged: sharing our passion
We know that many members of the public are already really passionate about chemistry, and we enjoy sharing our own passion with them. We don’t intend to neglect this audience as we move forward. Our ever popular series of Public Lectures are regularly oversubscribed.
Recent titles include "Saving the World with Leerdammer cheese: nanoporous materials to the rescue" and "Exploring the impact of the unknown: a potential UK shale gas industry", both of which can be viewed on our YouTube channel. And for the first time, this summer we are collaborating with the other societies based at Burlington House to run a series of summer lates events. Find out more on our public events pages.
Something for everyone
We believe that our community is in an exciting position to have meaningful and impactful discussions about chemistry with everybody, no matter what their current attitudes or experiences may be. We just need to ensure we put as much effort into understanding who we are talking to as we do into planning the content we want to deliver.