Engagers' DIgest - 5/4/11

Dear all,

While Easter eggs are just on the horizon, there is still time for lots of interesting public engagement in April...

Changing Perspectives: connecting art and science - until end April
You have until the end of April to see the two stunning University of Bristol exhibitions of science-inspired art at the Bristol Gallery and Grant Bradley Gallery. Read our piece in this week's Big Issue - centreforpublicengagement.blogspot.com/2011/04/changing-perspectives-exhibitions.html
Over the coming fortnight hear talks on topics as diverse as 'inspired engineering' and 'manipulating biologies'. Knit yourself a neuron or two on Saturday 9 April at the Grant Bradley Gallery, and try your hand at science-inspired fiction at a workshop on 13 April and open mic on 19 April. More information and event details here - bristol.ac.uk/changingperspectives

In the Digest:

1. Beacon for Wales Social Media for Researchers - 11 April 2011 [all fields]
   
2. Universities Week case study requests - deadlines in April and May [all fields]
   
3. Vice Chancellor's Impact Award [all fields]
   
4. ESRC Festival of Social Science - funding deadline June 2011 [social sciences]
5. Nuffield Council on Bioethics - consultation deadline 15 June [sciences, social sciences]
   
6. NCCPE news and resources [all fields]
   
7. Other events

1. Beacon for Wales Social Media for Researchers - 11 April 2011
Social Media for Researchers is organised by the Beacon for Wales and is FREE to attend. There are only 12 places available so contact the Beacon to reserve your place now: 029 20 870 862, beacon@cardiff.ac.uk Trainer: Dr Alice Bell; Monday 11th April 2011, 1.00 – 4.00pm
3.07 Training Suite, Julian Hodge Study Centre, Cardiff University
More information on this Beacon for Wales event listing.

2. Universities Week case study requests - deadlines in April and May
Universities Week - What's the Big Idea? runs from 13-19 June 2011, with the aim of demonstrating how universities impact on the local community and the UK society as a whole. They are looking for case studies of work that illustrate their 4 main themes - society, research, business and the factshare generator. Deadlines for the case studies are throughout April and May. More information here - http://www.universitiesweek.org.uk/Home.aspx

3. Vice Chancellor's Impact Award - deadline 25 April 2011
The Vice-Chancellor’s Impact Award is part of the New Enterprise Competition 2011. Two awards will be made this year, a winner’s prize of £1500 and a runner-up prize of £500 to individuals or groups showing outstanding innovation in creating economic and/or social impact from their research. The Vice-Chancellor's Impact Award is sponsored by IP Group. More information from the Impact Award site.

4. ESRC Festival of Social Science - funding deadline June 2011
The ESRC Festival of Social Science will be taking place in 2011 from 29 October to 5 November. Applications to participate in the Festival are now welcome and are available at www.esrcfestival.ac.uk.
Two types of applications are available:
a) Applying for support of up to £2000 -- due 3 June
b) Applying for event to be listed: non-supported -- due 17 June
The Festival welcomes event applications targeting a non-academic audience including young people, third sector, the public, business or government.
The guidelines around the aims of the Festival and how to apply are in the Application Guidelines under Organise an Event.

5. Nuffield Council on Bioethics consultation - deadline 15 June 2011
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics has just launched a consultation on emerging biotechnologies - www.nuffieldbioethics.org/biotechnologies. One of the areas they are looking at is public engagement, asking questions such as - What role should public opinion play in the development of policy around emerging biotechnologies? What public engagement activities are, or are not, particularly valuable with respect to emerging biotechnologies? How should we evaluate public engagement activities? Is there something unique about emerging biotechnologies, relative to other complex areas of government policy making, that requires special kinds of public engagement outside the normal democratic channels? Contribute your views!

6. NCCPE news and resources
Check out the latest news and resources from the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement, and subscribe to the mailing list to receive updates yourself.

7. Other events:

Widening Participation through Part-time Provision
Goldsmiths, University of London, Friday 20 May 2011
http://www.uall.ac.uk/

And just a little reminder - we need some light boxes for an exhibition at the Bristol Gallery for 10 days from 14 – 23 October. Please let us know if you can help!

Best wishes,

Philippa

Engagers' Digest - 21 February 2011

Dear all,

Sorry for the hiatus with the Digest - I should be back on track now and want to welcome a group of new subscribers - PhD students from the EPSRC doctoral training centres - welcome!

In this edition of the Digest:

1. University Public Engagement awards [award; all fields; all stages]
2. Impact Awards, organised by Praxis Unico [award; all fields; all stages]
3. Vice Chancellor's Impact Award [award; all fields; all stages]

4. Changing Perspectives: connecting art and science [opportunity; all fields; all stages]
5. Internship with 'The Naked Scientists' [opportunity; science; Masters/PhD students]
6. Einstein's Garden at the Green Man Festival [opportunity; science/art; all stages]

7. Science Communication Conference [conference; science; all stages]
8. Cuts in Culture: The Impact on Creativity [conference; arts and humanities; senior academics]


1. University Engagement Awards - deadline 1 March 2011
Sponsored by the Society of Merchant Venturers, the engagement awards are your chance to be recognised for your public engagement activity. Two awards will be made this year, each of £500 - one to an individual or group showing outstanding achievement in engagement, and one to an individual or group who is a newcomer to the area and has conducted an exceptional engagement project. For further information and guidance please see the Engagement Awards page on the CPE site.

2. Impact Awards organised by Praxis Unico - deadline 6 April 2011
These awards recognise and celebrate the success of collaborative working and the process of transferring knowledge and expertise beyond higher education, charities and public sector research establishments for the wider benefit of society and the economy. More information from the Impact Award site.

3. Vice Chancellor's Impact Award - deadline 25 April 2011
The Vice-Chancellor’s Impact Award is part of the New Enterprise Competition 2011. Two awards will be made this year, a winner’s prize of £1500 and a runner-up prize of £500 to individuals or groups showing outstanding innovation in creating economic and/or social impact from their research. The Vice-Chancellor's Impact Award is sponsored by IP Group. More information from the Impact Award site.

4. Changing Perspectives - from 18 March 2011
Changing Perspectives is a series of free public exhibitions, talks, workshops and performances that explores the fascinating relationships between art and science. We need your help to staff an interactive exhibition for schools and families on 18/19 March, and to solicit public perspectives on the body for a collaborative artwork. Please complete this short survey to tell us how you'd like to be involved - http://www.survey.bris.ac.uk/cpe/chngpersp_vols

For listings of all events and activities, see the Changing Perspectives website or download the Changing Perspectives flier (PDF; 1.1 MB)

5. Internship with The Naked Scientists
An 8-10 week summer internship with The Naked Scientists radio show. More details on this blog post.

6. Einstein's Garden at the Green Man Festival - deadline 27 May for 18-21 August festival
The Green Man Festival are looking for people or organisations that would like to bring a stall to Einstein’s Garden with the aim of engaging festival audiences with science. Stalls could explore fundamental scientific ideas or phenomena, the process of science or current scientific research. More information on the Centre for Public Engagement blog.

7. British Science Association Science Communication Conference - 25/26 May
This year's theme is ‘online engagement’ which will explore innovative uses of online media to engage the public with science. This will include discussions about podcasting, gaming, virtual worlds and citizen science, as well as an interactive social media workshop. Find out more from the Science Communication Conference site.

8. Cuts in Culture: The Impact on Creativity - 11 May 2011
A ring-fence has been promised for teaching in science, technology, engineering and mathematics but where will this leave the arts, humanities and social sciences? Hosted by Research Fortnight, this one-day conference will examine the repercussions of funding cuts to the arts and humanities sector, consider the immediate fallout and the impact on the future of the industry. More information.


Also happening in the University:

Climate of Change - University of Bristol Speaker Series 2011
Tuesday 22nd February, 6pm in the Queens Building -- Dr Tim Chatterton, UWE
www.bustbristol.org.uk or email bust@bristolhub.org

And finally - does anyone have any light boxes they might be able to lend for a 10-day exhibition in October? The exhibition will accompany this conference - http://www.heavenlydiscourses.org/ Please let me know.

Best wishes,

Philippa

Changing Perspectives - get involved

Changing perspectives is a series of events in March and April 2011 that explores the fascinating relationships between art and science. Through exhibitions, talks, workshops and performances, we want to see how art can draw different disciplines together, open up discussions about a range of issues and spark new insights for all.

There will be a 6-week exhibition of life science and medicine-inspired art at the Grant Bradley Gallery in Bedminster, and a month-long exhibition of physical sciences-inspired work at the Bristol Gallery. We'll be featuring work by recognised artists, writers, researchers and students. Alongside the exhibitions we're running a series of talks and workshops, and we're also staging a weekend of performance and interactive demonstrations at Circomedia in St Pauls, mixing anatomy, physiology and biomechanics with circus performance and body painting.

How can you get involved?

1. Taking your subject to the street - February and March 2011
Think creatively about how to get people inspired about your research - mini performances, conversations, science busking - anything is possible. Raise the profile of the Changing Perspectives series.

2. Volunteering at ‘Experience Changing Perspectives’ interactive event – 18/19 March 2011
at Circomedia Circus and Physical Theatre venue, St Pauls
• Anatomical body painting
• Presenting interactive anatomy and physiology
• Stewarding school and public groups

3. Volunteering at the exhibitions –
25 March-31 April 2011 at the Grant Bradley Gallery, Bedminster
1-31 April at the Bristol Gallery, Millennium Square
• Anatomical body painting for the opening night (25 March)
• Interpreting the exhibition for school and public groups

4. Volunteering at evening talks and workshops – various dates 25 March-31 April 2011
at the Grant Bradley Gallery, Bristol Gallery and City Museum and Art Gallery
See the Changing Perspectives event page for more information

5. Generating a piece of collaborative art with members of the public
• Exchange perspectives on the body with patients and members of the public
• Develop a collaborative artwork for the exhibition

6. Submitting your own work
• Submit and show your own science-inspired art work as part of the exhibition
• Perform at ‘Experience Changing Perspectives’ or at the exhibition opening night

If you want to contribute to the series in any way, contact Dane Comerford in the Centre for Public Engagement – dane.comerford@bristol.ac.uk