Do you want to have an impact with your research on contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), pathogens and AMR?
Do you think about ways to get your research in the hands of the public of other interest groups?
Do you look for ways your results can be used by stakeholders? But have not yet decided how to best accomplish this?
Then this “Challenge” might be the right thing to do for you!
- Develop a strategy to “transfer” or communicate your research results to a specific interest group
- Learn more about scientific communication via co-creation processes and consultation with communication experts
- Engage directly with your target audience & expand your networking
- Increase the visibility of your research & improve your communication plan
- The winning team will be able to send two representatives to the SETAC Europe Conference 2024 in Seville, Spain PLUS a cash prize of 500 Euro!
Problem Statement
Protecting our water resources from the risks of aquatic pollutants is not just an option, but an imperative for a sustainable and healthy future.
The pollution of our water sources – including rivers, estuaries and coastal ecosystems – by anthropogenic activities is one of the biggest concerns facing the world today. These pollutants, or contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), include chemicals like antibiotics, as well as microorganisms, such as antibiotic resistant bacteria and their antibiotic resistance genes, and are sourced from consumer products, urban areas, agriculture, animal husbandry farms, industry and maritime activities.
But, to successfully address CECs, AMR and pathogens, the results and outputs from research must be implemented, transferred to end-users (stakeholders), communicated within different sectors. How can this be accomplished? What methods, tools, or strategies are needed or can be improved to transfer knowledge to target groups? We need your help to find out!
- Take part in the Science Communication Innovation Challenge hosted by the AquaticPollutants transfer project, AquaticPollutantsTransNet! Submit your novel or innovative idea to better transfer knowledge about CECs, AMR and pathogens from a scientific project to targeted stakeholders.
- How is “target stakeholders” defined? Who the target stakeholders are is up to each participating team to decide on. It could be that you want to target the general public or disseminate results to policymakers. Other target groups could include industry, water suppliers or scientists/researchers. The target stakeholder depends on what outcome or impact you want to achieve.
- What do we mean by innovative or novel? The submissions could be either a new method that has not been used before or the application of an existing method for a different stakeholder group. It could also be the implementation of an existing method in a new way, which could improve the chances of reaching the correct recipient with the right information.
Innovation Challenge Overview
Theme
- Submitted knowledge transfer strategies / methods should in some way address contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and/or pathogens and the risks posed by them towards human health and the environment.
Forming Teams
- Teams should include more than two people. Please provide the name, organisation, profession and sector of each team member in the submission form.
- Each team should designate a team captain, who will serve as the main contact for the team. Provide the contact information for the captain (e-mail address) in the submission form.
- You are free to form your teams as you see fit. We encourage you however to include members from your target stakeholder audience to jointly develop the strategy/method to increase its effectiveness. For example, including a representative from a government agency that you wish to inform about the outcome of the project gives the double benefit of both better understanding the needs of the stakeholder and interacting directly with your target audience.
Consult with Communication Experts!
- Each team will be assigned a Communication Expert they can consult for questions or advice on their innovative knowledge transfer method. The experts come from various backgrounds in the realm of scientific communication and stakeholder engagement. They will be available for consultation throughout the submission period.
- If you would like to consult with a Communication Expert, please send an email to with your request (include "Innovation Challenge" in the subject line).
Submission Process
- Submit your proposed knowledge transfer strategy / method via the online form (link is below). Send any attachments required for the strategy / method via e-mail to .
- Each team will be required to complete an post-evaluation survey after submission, which we will use internally to gather feedback on the challenge. The survey will be emailed to each team captain after the close of the submission deadline.
- All teams will be notified via email with the results and any further actions.
Timeline
Contact
Do you have questions about the Science Communication Innovation Challenge?
Then send us an e-mail via (with the term "Innovation Challenge" in the subject line).