8 – 10 June 2022 marked the kick-off of a new EU Horizon Europe project GENDERACTIONplus hosted by the Institute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague, Czech Republic.
Plastic litter in the oceans has major consequences for humans, plants and animals, but it is a problem that starts on land. In the Plastic Experiment, school pupils are helping researchers to undertake a scientific study of the extent of plastic found in the Swedish natural environment. During two weeks in Spring, school classes collected and categorised 19,536 plastic items in places around Sweden.
On 1 June, VA’s first activity within the EU project TechEthos was held in Sweden. Members of the public met researchers to talk about new emerging climate engineering technologies held as part of an evening Climate Bar event at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Stockholm.
VA (Public & Science) has been awarded the Swedish Unesco Award 2022 for making important contributions to open science, both nationally and internationally.
The YouCount project is about using citizen science to boost young people’s inclusion in society. As part of the Swedish case, PhD student Dina Dabaghie has been sharing her own experiences with the young citizen scientists.
How can science communication be better adapted to the conditions of today? This is something that has been investigated as part of the EU RETHINK project, in which VA was responsible for the Swedish hub. The project, which has now come to an end after three years, has produced a range of resources and recommendations to strengthen science communication across Europe.
Traditional news media continue to be Swedes’ main source of news about the coronavirus. Researchers enjoy a high level of confidence and the lifting of restrictions in Sweden did not affect public confidence in the professional groups who comment on the coronavirus. These are the results of a follow-up survey conducted by the non-profit organisation VA (Public & Science) to investigate communication about the coronavirus in Sweden.
Incomprehensible, horrifying, worrying. After two years of pandemic, the world as we know it has been turned upside down again. We are all affected and concerned by Russia’s war against Ukraine. But there is a lot we can do to reduce fears and contribute to evidence-based democratic development.
With ten different cases in nine European countries, YouCountis an opportunity for researchers and young people to work together. Female researchers play an important role in the development and running of the project. On International Women’s Day, VA intern Dina Dabaghie wrote a post for the YouCount blog.