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Science and Society

The AGU Science and Society (SY) section works to (1) support and grow a community that actively facilitates stronger connections between societies and Earth and space sciences and (2) foster innovation within AGU that better enables discoveries and solutions in the geosciences to benefit humanity.

Join Us!

We aim to create a welcoming community for artists, communicators, policy makers, scientists from all disciplines, community members, and other decision makers at AGU



Featured Announcements

SY Team Award 2023

NOMINATE TEAM BY 12 APRIL 2023  for the Science and Society Section's Team Award, the AGU's only team-based honor. Learn more here: https://www.agu.org/Honor-and-Recognize/Honors/Section-Awards/Science-and-Society-Team-Award  



SY VOLUNTEERS | We are seeking future leaders for the upcoming elections and our executive committee. If you are interested or have a colleague you want to nominate, please fill out this form or send a CV and a note of interest to kevin.reed@stonybrook.edu, jvano@agci.org, and kripajagan@berkeley.edu with “AGU – SY Executive Committee” as the subject line. Check out our list of current SY volunteers to get a sense of the various positions!

SY Dialogues 2022

SCIENCE & SOCIETY DIALOGUES VIDEO RECORDINGS | Did you miss the 2022 Science and Society (SY) Dialogues series? No problem, you can watch the video recordings on our AGU Science and Society YouTube Playlist here and each video link is below.
Work at the science and society interface benefits from increased awareness of, and research in, how to share science, collaborate with the arts, inform policy making, and effectively work with communities and decision makers. The AGU Science & Society (SY) Dialogues series, held from July to November 2022, aimed to share knowledge in these key areas, which also align with our SY Tracks.

SY DIALOGUES VIDEO RECORDINGS
26 July: Art & Science - recording
16 Aug: Science Policy - recording
27 Sep: Community & Citizen Science - recording
18 Oct: Science Communication -
recording
8 Nov: Social & Behavioral Sciences - recording


2022_SY_Year_in_Review.png



Join Us!

I want to be a Science & Society member

  1. Log into agu.org/account/User/my-profile
  2. Click Interests. (If Interests doesn't appear you may have to click Personal first)
  3. See under Sections. If Science and Society is listed as Primary, then you’re already a member! If not, click the pencil icon (✏️) and add it.
  4. You will also receive the Science & Society email newsletter!

⇒ I want to connect on social media

  1. Follow, tag, and engage with the community on Twitter @AGUSciSociety
  2. Save the Science and Society YouTube playlist and subscribe to the AGU YouTube channel

I want to volunteer

Fill out this form to volunteer or nominate colleagues to become more involved in SY section activities and leadership. Contact anyone on SY Leadership for more information.

I want to share my story

Are you a student or early career member (or know someone who is) working at the interface of science and society? Are you open to sharing your story in a spotlight? Fill out this quick survey and we’ll be in touch!

⇒ I want to submit a session/abstract

Join us at AGU Fall Meeting for the Science and Society sessions! By each deadline, submit your Science and Society session proposal (usually March/April) or abstract (usually July/August). Contact any of the Track Leads or SY Section Leadership if you have any questions. For inspiration, check out Science and Society sessions from AGU Fall Meeting 20202021, and 2022.

⇒ Check out other action opportunities 

(1) Science to Action is a grassroots effort to connect science and action with communities and decision makers. Under the Science to Action banner, AGU members and others carry out Fall Meeting sessions and network events with our Science and Society section and Thriving Earth Exchange. (2) AGU's Thriving Earth Exchange program connects scientists with communities and awards a Community Science Fellowship for training and project opportunities. (3) AGU offers programs and opportunities to share and advocate for science.

What is FAQ?

FAQ means frequently asked questions. Find a list of common questions and answers about the Science and Society (SY) section, Fall Meeting, and AGU on the SY FAQ page. Learn more and share with others about Science and Society (SY) through this 2021 SY Info Sheet.

What is JEDI?

JEDI means justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. We strongly encourage all Science and Society (SY) session conveners to prioritize JEDI in their events during the Fall Meeting. For more information, visit our SY Section JEDI page.

Tweets, Announcements, and Discussion

See our latest SY tweets and more announcements and discussion posts at the end of this webpage below.

Find all Science & Society sessions at #AGU22 listed here. Watch recordings until 28 Feb 2023.

Copy a session's event code from the SY list here and paste in the Search Everything box of the new platform here to watch recordings.

  • JEDI: Help us reflect on justice & diversity by filling out JEDI Questionnaire 2022

  • OSPA: If you're a student or judge, learn more about our section's new OSPA scoring rubric and guidelines for judges on our Awards page

Science & Society Tracks Sessions

Science Policy Track
Community & Citizen Science Track
Science Communication Track
Social & Behavioral Sciences Track
Art & Science Track
See this and other activities in the following "Art & Science Activities" section

Art & Science Activities

Participate in the SY Art & Science Track Sessions
Attend the Art & Science Plenary
15 Dec 12:45p CT | McCormick Place - Grand Ballroom S100 (South, Level 1)

Contribute to the AGU22 Community Poem
“Dear Sky, Dear Blue Planet” is the AGU22 Community Poem that invites YOU to speak to the integration of artistic and scientific modes of inquiry. Hear excerpts from the final product at the Art & Science Plenary on 15 December, or read the contributions.

Enter the first AGU Virtual Art Science Exhibit
Organized by the Art & Science Track of AGU's Science & Society Section 

Go to the in-person Art Exhibit
At AGU Central outside of the exhibit hall

Student & Early Career Events

Science Communication and Education Student and Early Career Social
15 Dec 4:30p CT | Hyatt Regency McCormick Place - Regency Ballroom E (Level 2)

Science and Society: Engaging Across Scales—How Students and Early Career Scientists Are Bridging the Gap Between Science and Society (SCIWS10)
10 Dec 8a CT | Location: S105d | Scientific Workshop

Students walking in a grassy field on a sunny day (Photo by Naassom Azevedo)



Science & Society Tracks

We have five "tracks" in our section. Please feel free to contact the Track Leads or any SY Section Leadership members for more information. Find contact information on the Leadership webpage.

SY Exe Comm and AGU staff
Science and Society Executive Committee & AGU Staff (SY Retreat, March 2022)

Track Descriptions

SCIENCE POLICY
Scientists have a critical role to play in advising policy makers throughout all levels of government. Section members working in this space contribute to specific science-based public policy initiatives and include scientists, policy makers, and science advocates who work at the interface of science and public policy.

COMMUNITY & CITIZEN SCIENCE
In community science, scientists and communities do science together to advance one or more community priorities. This encourages communities, particularly historically marginalized and oppressed communities, to guide, participate in, learn from, and benefit from science. Citizen Science, similarly, engages the public to collaborate with scientists to assist in research and monitoring, from local to global investigations. Community and citizen science (CCS) can take many forms. Through this track we promote and share innovative and effective practices, and advance scholarship that examines and reflects on CCS approaches.

SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
Science communication includes the efforts of natural, physical and social scientists, communications professionals, and teams that communicate the process and values of science and scientific findings to non-specialist audiences outside of formal educational settings. The goals of science communication are varied, including enhanced dialogue, understanding, awareness, enthusiasm, improving decision making, or influencing behaviors. Science communication channels include in-person interaction, online, social media, mass media, or other communication methods.
ART & SCIENCE
Scientific and artistic endeavors are both used to explore and understand the world around us. Artistic techniques can help scientists visualize data and communicate results to other scientists as well as non-scientists. Art plays an increasingly important role in science education in both informal and formal environments. The integration of art and science yields interdisciplinary methodologies that enable connections between science and society.

SOCIAL & BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE
One of the fundamental motivations of geosciences is to produce knowledge that helps to solve society’s most pressing issues. Social and behavioral sciences can help us understand how people and institutions think, feel, and behave with respect to scientific knowledge. Insights from varied fields (including but not limited to anthropology, economics, history, political science, decision science, psychology, education, and sociology) and from non-academic communities, can help to forge stronger linkages between science and society. This track promotes research and practice from these fields, and aims to serve as a bridge between social sciences and other disciplines in geosciences.

"There is no planet B" sign at climate rally (Photo by Li-An Lim)

SY Discussions

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