In this week’s episode of Research Comms I welcome back old friend of the podcast, Sam Illingworth: scientist, science communicator and poet. Sam communicates all kinds of STEM topic but specialises in environmental science and he was recently involved with the research, writing and publication of a report exploring how climate specialists are communicating the issue of climate change and global warming to the UK public.

In this episode of Research Comms social psychologist Jonathan Haidt talks about how we can break down barriers by talking to people’s ‘elephants’ and why the defence of viewpoint diversity in academic and research institutions is one of the most critical battles of our times.

This week’s guest on the Research Comms podcast is Dr Kanta Dihal, a Senior Research Fellow from Cambridge University’s Leverhulme Centre for Future Intelligence, where she runs 'Global AI Narratives', a project exploring the many ways in which artificial intelligence is perceived by cultures around the world.

This week’s guests are data designer, Stefanie Posavec, and data journalist, Miriam Quick. We talk about their new book, about how constraints can encourage creativity, and they give their tips on how researchers and communicators can improve their own data visualisations.

This week’s guest on the Research Comms podcast is Dr. Jamie Gallagher, science communication and evaluation expert. He reveals how he pivoted to take his science communication business online after the COVID pandemic hit, and how he’s been helping other public engagement practitioners to navigate the transition to our new virtual world.

This week’s guest on the Research Comms podcast is Alex Buxton, Head of Strategic Communications at the University of Oxford. We discuss what it’s been like to communicate the biggest story in the world right now - the development of the Oxford Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

This week’s guest on the Research Comms podcast is Professor Andy Miah - Chair in Science Communication and Future Media at the University of Salford. In our conversation we discuss how best to engage people with unfamiliar technological advances, why it’s so important for all academics and researchers to have some kind of a public presence, as well as delving into what Prof. Miah means when he says that we’re undergoing a crisis of science communication.

Dr. Anna Blakney is a vaccine scientist and recent viral sensation on the social media platform, TikTok, where her videos about COVID19 vaccines have racked up millions of views since she started creating them just a few months ago, gaining her hundreds of thousands of followers.

This week’s guest is Dr Susanna L Harris, a former microbiologist turned science communicator and founder of PhD Balance, which helps graduate students who are experiencing problems with their mental health.

This week’s guest is Raven Baxter, aka Raven the Science Maven. Raven is a molecular biologist and science communicator who, as well as sharing her love of science with the world, is also a huge champion of greater diversity in the STEM sector.