GS Annual Lecture with Professor Jim Al-Khalili: The Importance of Public Engagement for Researchers

Over the last two decades, ‘science communication’ and ‘public engagement’ have received increasing attention among learned societies and government agencies, and researchers are now routinely expected to present and debate their work in various public arenas. Recent trends in public engagement go beyond the role of the academic as public intellectual, advocating more direct and diverse forms of communication and participation. Researchers are encouraged to relate their work to different publics and make use of a multitude of methods and media. However, public engagement is a skill in itself, requiring commitment, training and practical experience.

Professor Jim Al-Khalili OBE is one of the UK’s leading experts and practitioners in the field of public engagement. He is a physicist, author and broadcaster based at the University of Surrey where he also holds a chair in the Public Engagement in Science. He has published widely in his specialist field of theoretical nuclear physics, but spends half of his time as a science communicator. He has written many popular science books, between them translated into 26 languages, and is a regular presenter of TV science documentaries, including the Bafta nominated BBC series, Chemistry: A Volatile History, but is probably best known as presenter of the weekly BBC Radio 4 programme, The Life Scientific. He is a recipient of the Royal Society Michael Faraday medal and the Institute of Physics Kelvin Medal.

The lecture will be followed by Questions & Answers and a drinks reception.

Please note that this event is for staff and students of the University of Westminster only. We anticipate high demand and seating is unreserved. Please arrive in good time.