In the Trenches: Scientific Outreach from the Perspective of a Working Scientist

1. In the Trenches: Scientific Outreach from the Perspective of a Working Scientist Andrea D. Wolfe Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology The Ohio State University

2. Why bother??? • Kansas and all other “balanced treatment” efforts • Yellowstone, Los Alamos, Southern California wildfires • Genetic engineering and genetically modified organisms • School funding, higher education, $$$ for basic research

3. Perception of the problem • More than half of students in introductory course at OSU had never traveled outside Ohio • More than 90% believe that technology will solve all environmental problems • Almost half had a conflict with religion and science • Most think that science is beyond their ability

4. Examples of Scientific Outreach for Botanists - Academic • Teach in the non-majors biology courses • Sponsor undergraduate research experiences • Sponsor high school student research • Serve as a science fair judge • Assist in K-12 workshops through education department

5. Scientific Outreach for Botanists - Connecting with the Public • Opportunities with children • Youth organizations • K-12 interaction • Volunteering with parks, zoos, etc. • Opportunities with adults • Garden clubs and plant associations • Tap into your hobbies • Using the web as a tool for outreach

6. Scientific Outreach to Children • Boy Scouts of America (the other BSA) • Council level activities for Cub Scouts • Pow wow • District level activities for Cub Scouts • Day Camp • Webelos overnight campout • Scout Day • Webelos outdoor training

7. Webelos Outdoor Training

8. Scientific Outreach to Children • K-12 opportunities • Volunteer in the classroom • Volunteer for fieldtrips that involve nature • Develop unique opportunities • Digi-cam safari to South Africa

9. Fieldwork in South Africa -Outreach with Tremont Elementary School in Upper Arlington, Ohio • November 15 to December 15, 1999 • Email correspondence from Compton Herbarium • 233 digital photos sent in 16 batches • Narrative about what we did, what we saw • Background information on biodiversity of South Africa, habitats visited • Overview of cultural differences and history

10. In the Herbarium

11. In the Field

12. Collecting parasitic plants

13. Habitats of South Africa

14. Interesting Plants

15. South African Fauna

16. Cultural aspects

17. San Cave Paintings

18. Scientific Outreach - Adults • Garden club and other public lectures • “Stalking the Wild Penstemon” • “Parasitic Plants of South Africa” • Hobbies as an opportunity for outreach • Woodworkers of Central Ohio • Central Ohio Woodturners

19. Central Ohio Woodturners

20. Outreach Opportunities in Woodworking & Woodturning • The botany of wood • Grain and figure • Stems and roots • Burls, burrs, disease • Sustainable logging • Biodiversity • Biomes of the world

21. Using the Web for Outreach • Taxon-specific websites • Especially effective for horticulturally and agriculturally important plants • Technique-oriented websites • ISSR Resource Website • Courses and course pages on the web • Web pages on research

22. How much time??? • Not a big investment in the overall scale of a busy academic schedule • Maybe one or two weekends a year for scouts, one evening a month for committee work • An afternoon here and there for K-12 • A few hours every couple of months for interaction with fellow crafters • An occasional evening for other efforts • A bit more time for web based efforts

23. How does it benefit us? • Scientific outreach is important to the university • We can make some contribution to improving scientific literacy • We are public employees - people like to know how their tax money is spent • It’s fun!