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2017 GSA PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

Figure 3. The March for Science, 22 April 2017. (A) The March in Dublin, Ireland. Author’s photo from Merrion Street Upper on the way to the Government
Buildings, Dublin. (B) Pew Research Center study (Pew Research Center, May 2017) indicating that support for the goals of the science marches and
their perceived impact generally scales by age group.

only serves to expand the ideological divides developed around OPPORTUNITIES TO BRIDGE THE GAP
evidence-based issues (Kahan, 2010; Braman et al., 2012; Pew
Research Center, Oct. 2016). Complicating this issue is the rap- In every crisis, there is opportunity. High-quality public
idly evolving shift from legacy media to online platforms. It is engagement has been shown to increase the public’s positive per-
clear, however, that dissemination does not equal public engage- ception of science (Liang et al., 2014), to elicit policy change, and
ment (Heagerty, 2015). The scientific community needs to move to increase federal research funding (Bergan, 2009). The scien-
beyond the traditional focus on one-way transmission of knowl- tific community appreciates that decisions informed by scientific
edge to one of community discourse (e.g., National Academies understanding will always trump those based on unsubstantiated
of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2017). or confused arguments.

Member Type <1% 2% Here, I build on the “call to bridge the gap” articulated so well
2% by previous GSA presidents. Why? Because the “gap” remains,
has grown larger, and now represents a true threat to how geosci-
37% 13% Professional ence research will be funded, accepted, and utilized by those out-
16% Student side our scientific community. And GSA is critical to bridging the
Senior “gap.” A core component of GSA’s mission is to promote and
30% Early Career Professional communicate geoscience findings. The Society has several pro-
K–12 Teacher grams available that do this well and I’ll highlight a few in the
Affiliate following discussion. I see three emerging opportunities for
Honorary Fellow enhanced public engagement by the Society.

Member Age 2% Over 80 yrs. old 1. Empowering a New Generation of Receptive Geoscientists
71-80 yrs. old
8% 20% 61-70 yrs. old This opportunity is presented by the current demographics of
6% 51-60 yrs. old our membership. Students and early career professionals make up
41-50 yrs. old 43% of GSA (Fig. 4). This age group of geoscientists has spoken
13% 13% 31-40 yrs. old clearly regarding their interest in being part of the solution. They
15% 13% 25-30 yrs. old want to develop professional skills that provide them access to
18-24 yrs. old high-profile and interactive science discourse. In 2013, the
10% No Data National Science Foundation “challenged” graduate students
across the USA to identify ways to improve their education. More
Figure 4. Demographics of GSA members by membership category and than 500 students articulated a common desire for improved
age (2017). training in transferable and marketable professional skills, which
are not traditionally taught in the geosciences or other STEM
fields. The single most common skill identified was science com-
munication—they want to excel at making science more acces-
sible to the public (e.g., Shorr et al., 2013; Scientific American’s
Board of Editors, 2018). The students appreciate that engaging the
public increases science literacy, leads to more informed policy
decisions, and improves K–12 education. More effective public
engagement will inspire the next generation of scientists and cre-
ate advocates for the geosciences.

26 GSA Today | March-April 2018