Amy Nippert

On September 17th, 2024, science met storytelling in an unforgettable evening at the Alberta Rose Theatre in Portland, OR, thanks to a powerful collaboration between ASC, The Story Collider, and Make You Think Inc. This unique live event blended science communication and personal stories, showcasing how the two can intersect to inspire, entertain, and connect […]

My experience with graduate school was that I was as much of a public speaker and a writer as I was a scientist in the lab. In my five years in a biomedical research PhD program, we were constantly under pressure to not only produce interesting data, but to communicate it clearly, quickly, and concisely, […]

When I started in research over a decade ago, I was motivated by the scientific topics that interested me: I wanted to learn more about infections and their role in global health. But if I’m honest, I never loved the lab. I enjoyed the fine motor skill component, listening to podcasts while I worked, and […]

Q: Can you tell us about your educational and professional background? A: I have an eclectic education! An undergraduate degree in Physiology (BSc Hons), a PhD in Health, and most recently, a Master’s with Distinction in Film. I thought I was going to be a bench scientist, but a disability and orthopedic surgeries stopped me […]

ASC volunteers represent a wide variety of science communication paths: editing Wikipedia, responding to foodborne illness complaints, designing museum exhibits, and more. Today we’re featuring someone who has trained hundreds of scientists to communicate about their science with broad audiences. Scott Hershberger (ASC’s newsletter editor) spoke with Tamara Poles, ASC’s accessibility director, about her full-time […]

In previous ASC volunteer spotlights, we’ve featured science communicators who plan our annual conference, coordinate our year-round course offerings, and lead our marketing and communications team. This time, we’re featuring our blog editor, Amy Nippert. Scott Hershberger (ASC’s newsletter editor) talked with Amy about her lab research on chronic pain, her involvement in science communication […]

The Association of Science Communicators’ growth over the years has been made possible in large part by our passionate long-time volunteers. For our third volunteer spotlight, we’re featuring Bre Kelsey, ASC’s Program Director and a member of our executive board, who has been involved with ASC since 2018. Scott Hershberger (ASC’s newsletter editor) spoke with […]

The Association of Science Communicators’ volunteers are central to our efforts to serve the scicomm community. For our second volunteer spotlight, we’re featuring Sky Hatter, ASC’s marketing and communications director and webmaster. Scott Hershberger (ASC’s newsletter editor) spoke with Sky about her work as an artist and graphic designer, her experiences in museum exhibit design, […]

As a volunteer-run professional society, the Association of Science Communicators depends on our vibrant community for our success. Our volunteers help with conference logistics, community engagement, partnership development, and much more. For our first volunteer spotlight Q&A, we’re featuring Amanda Pluntze, ASC’s course coordinator. Scott Hershberger (ASC’s newsletter editor) spoke with Amanda about her work […]

The Association of Science Communicators (ASC) hosted its 7th annual Science Talk Conference last month and the evolution of science communication was on full display. This year’s theme centered around “Giving a Voice to Science” and participants saw that message echo through keynote presentations from leaders in the community, panel discussions pulling back the curtain […]

If we’re to give a voice to science and society, we mustn’t forget the role of lawmakers – and the communication lessons they can provide. I’ve blogged a lot about science policy and how to get involved at the Fancy Comma blog. I’ve talked about being a scientist in politics, ways scientists can get involved […]

What does it mean to “give science a voice?” Scientists develop an interest in science communication for many reasons (Besley et al., 2015), which can include informing people’s decision-making on forefront issues in their fields. Scientists, regardless of their specific areas of expertise, often find themselves in the role of advocates for science more generally […]

A new study finds that the majority of images related to health topics on stock photography sites are of light-skinned people within a fairly narrow age range, making it more difficult – and expensive – for organizations to create health education materials aimed at reaching other groups. The findings are significant because using images relevant […]

It is not the most intellectual of the species that survives; it is not the strongest that survives; but the species that survives is the one that is able best to adapt and adjust to the changing environment in which it finds itself. – Charles Darwin Our dive boat bounces through another choppy wave, showering […]

ASC is personally asking our community to take two-minutes to review and digitally sign the below open letter, committing to 2023 as the year we build wide-reaching trust in science.  If you are looking for more information about our reasoning behind the letter, please visit this link. Science has been politicized to the detriment of […]

Anyone who has been in a grad program (or still is), knows the feeling of gnawing doubt. Unsure how you ever got into the program. Unsure how to do science. Unsure if you even still like science. Fortunately, when I was in grad school, I got the opportunity to participate in a stand-up comedy workshop […]

Interest in full-time scicomm careers is skyrocketing, but landing a full-time position that matches your experience and interests can be harrowing. And navigating a freelance career can seem overwhelming without a guide. After hearing her present at Science Talk ‘22, the Association of Science Communicators (ASC) reached out to Marley Parker, freelance science writer, photographer […]