Workshop 2: agendas
king's college london, december 2017
This workshop focussed on the agendas motivating the popularization of palaeontological research by scientists, and the reasons for interest in palaeontological subjects among the public. It examined the synergies and tensions between these sets of interests, and how particular audiences are either privileged or excluded in these processes. In addition, we discussed the challenges of palaeontological outreach, some of the pressures around it, and the frequent conflict between different goals and interests.
Some of the key questions were:
- Why popularize palaeontology at all? What have been the difference motives and agendas for this, and how have they affected popularization efforts?
- How has the public position of palaeontological research affected scientific research and scientific careers? What are the potential costs and risks of making palaeontology a ‘popular’ science?
- What audiences have traditionally been interested in palaeontology, and why? What audiences should we try to reach with palaeontological outreach today, and how?