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Reflecting on engagement

9 October 2009

Conference participants

Engage 09 - reflecting on engagement
Photo by Dane Comerford

How can I get started in public engagement? What are the best ways to use new media to communicate with the public? How can we measure the impact of our public engagement activities? These were some of the questions up for discussion when staff and students got together for the University's first-ever public engagement conference, Engage 2009.

The event was chaired by Kathy Sykes, Professor of Sciences and Society, and opened by Professor Guy Orpen, Pro Vic-Chancellor of Research and Enterprise.  Steven Hill, from Research Councils UK  kicked off proceedings with a presentation outlining the policy decisions that have made public engagement a key part of the government's and society's expectations for universities. Next, Paul Manners introduced the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement (NCCPE), an initiative co-managed by the University in partnership with the University of the West of England (UWE). The NCCPE is seeking to make public engagement a valued and integral part of what all Higher Education institutions do.

This was a great opportunity to meet and talk to other researchers and partners outside the University.

Participant at the conference
Engage 2009 brought together staff interested in public engagement from across the University and highlighted the range of engagement activities currently taking place. A lively set of case studies presented the successful BA in English Literature and Community Engagement; the University-hosted Festival of School Sports and Culture; the work of ChemLabS bringing chemistry to schools from Southville to South Africa; ALSPAC's efforts to involve young people in the way it does research ; and the countrywide SEARCH project, which explores scientists' experiences of public engagement.

Attendees included a broad cross-section of the University, as well as local organisations such as Explore-at-Bristol and the Bristol Natural History Consortium. The conference demonstrates the University's commitment to creating an environment in which public engagement can flourish. One of the most important ways of doing that is to nurture a community of like-minded people within and beyond the University. "This was a great opportunity to meet and talk to other researchers and partners outside the University", said one attendee.

The Centre for Public Engagement, which organised the event, aims to build on the conference's success by further developing its networks and sharing learning across the University

 

Please contact The Public Engagement Officer for further information.

Further information:

Detailed information about the presentations, case studies and workshops can be found at the Centre for Public Engagement blog. For more information about public engagement at the University of Bristol, or to sign up for next year's conference, contact the Public Engagement Officer.