Funding
for Science Communication Workshops 2007
In support of its objectives to enhance and improve coverage of science in the
South African media, the South African Agency for Science and Technology
Advancement offers workshops for:
Scientists - to support them to communicate their messages to the general public;
and to
Media practitioners - to encourage and equip them to communicate science stories.
SAASTA will be hosting a series of science communication workshops around South
Africa in 2007.
Objectives
Provide opportunities to bring science closer to society by encouraging
interaction between scientists and the media;
Provide skills training in communicating science.
Call for proposals
SAASTA invites creative and innovative proposals from groups or individuals to
present the workshops. Only proposals submitted with a clear course outline and
budget breakdown will be considered.
Requirements
SAASTA invites proposals focusing on workshops with one or a combination of
themes. Interested parties should focus on their expertise and not necessarily
include all the themes in their proposal.
1. Target audience under- and graduate students; postgraduate students,
researchers and communication practitioners at science centres and higher
education institutions. Themes should, at a minimum, include the following
topics:
Media training (dealing with the print and broadcast media; interview
skills; writing for the popular media and simplifying the message)
Presentation skills (PowerPoint presentations; public speaking)
* Experienced journalist to be part of training (see below).
2. Target audience journalism students, practicing journalists. Themes
should, at a minimum, include the following topics:
Finding science stories
Translating scientific articles
Making sense of statistics and figures in scientific papers
* Scientist to be part of training (see below).
More information:
1. Participation of practitioners: The names of at least one experienced
journalist (see theme 1 above) and one scientist (see theme 2 above)
participating in the relevant theme should be included in the proposal.
2. The first four workshops will be held in March 2007.
3. SAASTA will invite groups of maximum 20 trainees to each workshop.
4. Workshops must be interactive and include practical exercises, e.g. writing,
radio & TV interviews, etc.
5. SAASTA will be responsible for travel, venue and catering arrangements and
costs.
Selection Criteria
Quality and relevance of content of workshops
A strong focus on interactive training
Creativity and innovativeness of approach
Cost effectiveness of the proposal
Budget (excluding travel, venue and catering costs, which will be covered by
SAASTA)
Inclusion of monitoring and evaluation measures to illustrate the success of
the workshops
Experience of working in the science system will be an advantage. Presenters
must have experience working with groups from diverse backgrounds.
Closing date
All proposals must be submitted to SAASTA electronically/ by fax or hand
delivered. The deadline for submitting proposals is close of business, 14
February 2007. Submissions received after this date will not be considered.
More information:
 Further
detail and forms at SAASTA
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