Right to Information Matters Most to Citizens - by Nalaka Gunawardene
Presenting Scientific Information to the Public-...
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Presenting scientific
information to the public
Nalaka GunawardeneNalaka Gunawardene
New Delhi, 21 August 2014
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My world…
• Journalist: Professional sceptic & asker of questions
– Interviewer on TV
– Moderator at technical and/or policy events
• Switching between micro & macro in analysis:
– Columnist (SciDev.Net, Ceylon Today, Ravaya, Echelon)– Columnist (SciDev.Net, Ceylon Today, Ravaya, Echelon)
– Op-ed essayist (incl. The Hindu, Times of India, dna, Himal
Southasian, Groundviews.org)
• Public communicator of science & technology
– Producing videos & web content for research institutes
– Training researchers on communicating their work to policy makers & the public
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Communication
Broad process of engagement:
Many methods, processes & strategies
Using various channels & technologies
Media-based communication
Print: text/images
Radio: spoken words/music
TV/Video: moving images
Web 1.0: websites + web news media
Web 2.0: social media
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Our ‘Ecosystem’
• Mainstream media: a contested space; marketplace of ideas; platform for discussion & debatediscussion & debate
• Social media: cacophonous place; noise + some utility
• We don’t own or fully control these spaces
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Questions for today
• What info needs of citizens in today’s society?
• How to engage policy & public audiences?
– via Mainstream media
– via Professional events & publications– via Professional events & publications
– via Social media and networks
• What approaches, styles & formats work well?
• What info do policy makers need?
• What do YOU want to accomplish?
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Bottomlines…
• No captive audience
• Crowded, noisy public sphere
• Often, no level playing fields
• Media: a contested & contentious space• Media: a contested & contentious space
• Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose
(both are instructive!)
• Public mind: fickle, moods fleeting
• Policymaker mind: distracted, fire-fighting
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Which mode of engagement?
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Source: Tools for Policy Impact, Daniel Start & Ingie Hovland. ODI, 2004.
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Being clear on ‘mode’ matters!
• Choice of publication outlet
– Mass circulation/trade/professional
– Open access or restricted circulation
• Level of detail and analysis offered• Level of detail and analysis offered
• Type of examples, metaphors & quotes
• Choice of language, tone, arguments
• What cautions/liberties to take
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Audience definition matters!
• One size doesn’t fit all
• Mass media: ok for general awareness raising
and profile building – but need to build on it!
• Define who matters most (primary audience)• Define who matters most (primary audience)
• Identify who can support/oppose a change
• Cultivate allies & multipliers (key journalists,
bloggers, tweeps,)
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Decide which ‘personality’ to use…
• Peer recognised, authoritative expert?
• Deep immersed investigator on issue/topic?
• Offering a unique perspective?
• Reporting reality from grassroots/periphery?• Reporting reality from grassroots/periphery?
• Just a sceptical inquirer?
• Strong dissenting/discordant voice?
• Confused everyman/woman seeking clarity?
• Something else?
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Seize the moment!
• Comment on draft policies, white papers
• Ride popular sentiment (celebrities, sporting events, budget, elections) to stir debate
• Respond to media report within your area• Respond to media report within your area
– Endorse/support/
– Raise doubts, questions or concerns
– Strongly disagree
• React to an extreme viewpoint by someone
• Correct a myth that’s spreading
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2013: Year on Twitter in India
Source: https://blog.twitter.com/2013/2013-the-year-on-twitter-in-india
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2013: Year on Twitter in India – contd.
Source: https://blog.twitter.com/2013/2013-the-year-on-twitter-in-india
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ENGAGING
POLICY-MAKERS
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Knowledge ecology
• Research is one among
several voices in ‘knowledge
ecology’ of policy & practice
• Research isn’t something ‘we’
Improving the impact
of development
research through
better research
communications and
uptake • Research isn’t something ‘we’
do & communicate to ‘them’
• Search for answers &
solutions has become more
participatory and nuanced in
recent years
uptake
AusAID, DFID & UKCDS
funded global
workshop in London,
Nov 29 – 30, 2010
Full Report:
http://tiny.cc/R4DCom
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Knowledge ecology – contd.,
• Researchers need to improve
SUPPLY of robust
research…to guide both
policy & practice
Improving the impact
of development
research through
better research
communications and policy & practice
• There is much value in:
– NEUTRALITY of evidence
– Effective communication
– Cordial engagement
communications and
uptake
AusAID, DFID & UKCDS
funded global
workshop in London,
Nov 29 – 30, 2010
Full Report:
http://tiny.cc/R4DCom
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Evidence is only part of the mix
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Example of trusted platform:
www.scidev.net• Free access website:
covering science & tech
important for development
• News, views & analysis in
Arabic, English, French, Arabic, English, French,
Spanish
• Platform where policy
makers, researchers and
dev professionals come
together to debate
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What DO policy makers want?
• To understand how to mainstream science evidence & tech innovation for development
• Global survey by SciDev.Net, LSE & partners: 3,000 responses + 600 interviews + focus groups in SEAsiapartners: 3,000 responses + 600 interviews + focus groups in SEAsia
• Probing how ‘knowledge brokers’ in S&T operate in different developing regions
• Many insights from policy makers & policy influencers on how they seek, find & use evidence 4 policy
Full Report:
tiny.cc/SDNGR12
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Among key findings…
• 70% respondents use evidence for ‘personal
knowledge building, keeping up to date with certain
topics’, than only for delivering specific activities
• Over 60% of policymakers resort to ‘personal
knowledge and experience’ when sourcing evidence knowledge and experience’ when sourcing evidence
for policy development.
• Around half of all public sector respondents use
‘media organisations and the public perception’ as
common sources of information for policy
development
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Challenges faced by policy-makers
• Lack of human and/or financial resources to act
• Lack of economic implications of research findingsof research findings
• Lack of sources that offer S&T info in readily usable mannerfor public engagement
• Also: a perception that public lacks interest in S&T Report:
tiny.cc/SDNGR12
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HITCH-HIKING WITH
MAINSTREAM MEDIA
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Media: necessary, not sufficient…
• Communicating through media alone may not always lead to policy/social change
• It’s a good starting point, not an end by itself
• Policy and social change needs:
– Knowledge and awareness (factual base)– Knowledge and awareness (factual base)
– Understanding and relating to own situation
– Capacity to act appropriately
– Skills and resources
– Willingness to act (or political will)
– Motivation & ability to sustain change
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Engaging media: benefits
• Media an important partner/ally
• Key factor in shaping public opinion
• Influential in shaping public policy
• Vast outreach on regular basis: visibility• Vast outreach on regular basis: visibility
• Well-positioned to quickly disseminate
messages/content
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Engaging media: hazards!
• Media prone to manipulation, distortion,
commercial pressures, sensationalism, etc.
• Media’s constituency & mandate may vary
from your own interests from your own interests
• It’s an industry, not charity!
• Has own particular needs, preferences, biases
& operational methods
• Not every outlet equally credible
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‘Media’ is a plural…
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MAKING DATA &
ANALYSIS
‘COME ALIVE’
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Getting the balance right…
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Create/use memorable ‘Memes’
• Teleuse@BOP (demand side trends of telecom use in
emerging Asian economies)
• Budget Telecom (pre-paid, low-margin biz model
adopted by many South Asian telcos)
• Broadband or Fraudband (advertised vs delivered)• Broadband or Fraudband (advertised vs delivered)
• Long Last Mile (bridging gaps in delivering disaster
early warnings to communities most at risk)
• Broadband & Narrow Minds (lack of cyber civility on
social media platforms)
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My learning
• Distracted world: catch audience with a catchy
title, image, metaphor
• Keep them engaged with:
– Latest info & insights (not obsolete stuff)– Latest info & insights (not obsolete stuff)
– Uncommon perspectives
– Challenge them, but gently
• Ask more questions than I can answer
• Enthusiasm, humour help
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http://www.slideshare.net/NalakaG
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In Search of Arthur Clarkeisms…
• “For every expert, there is an
equal and opposite expert”
• “Cricket is South Asia’s true
religion!”religion!”
• “Sri Lanka is India without the
hassle!”
• “Singapore is Disneyland with
the death penalty!”
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In Search of Arthur Clarkeisms - 2
• Clarke’s Three Laws – well known
• Clarke’s 64th Law: “Reading computer
manuals without the hardware is as
frustrating as reading sex manuals frustrating as reading sex manuals
without the software!”
• “I don’t believe in astrology…But then,
I’m a Sagittarius - and we’re very
sceptical!”
• Full column: http://wp.me/p2cfFl-ag
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Fine example of communicating ICT
research to public & policy audiences
• INFORMATION LIVES OF THE POOR: Fighting Poverty with Technology
• By Laurent Elder, Rohan Samarajiva, Alison Gillwald, and Samarajiva, Alison Gillwald, and Hernán Galperin
• IDRC Canada, 2013
• http://www.idrc.ca/EN/Resources/Publications/Pages/ArticleDetails.aspx?PublicationID=1250
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MY COLLABORATIONSMY COLLABORATIONS
WITH LIRNEasia
Examples
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Clarifying a persistent misconception
Quotes Rohan
Samarajiva &
Abu Saeed Khan of
LIRNEasia: Why LIRNEasia: Why
toilets and
telephones are the
wrong comparison
http://wp.me/p2cfFl-9i
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World Conf on
International
Telecoms (WCIT),
Dubai, Dec 2012:
European proposal
to designate
Internet content
providers as “call
Seizing the moment
providers as “call
originators” and
subject them to a
“sending party
network pays” rule
http://wp.me/p2cfFl-7q
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Vint Cerf of Google (top) & Rohan Samarajiva of LIRNEasia
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African delegate to WCIT Dubai looks at LIRNEasia
website. Contentious ETNO proposal dropped!
http://lirneasia.net/2012/12/dubai-is-a-win-for-lirneasia
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Using notable anniversaries
SciDev.Net South
Asia Analysis - June
2014: Cell phones
empower South
Asia’s poor
http://shar.es/1nyBUb
Widely shared on
social media and
reproduced in some
newspapers
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Riding on upcoming anniversaries
Based on
LIRNEasia DRR
Lecture 2014 by
Stuart Weinstein, Stuart Weinstein,
Deputy Director,
Pacific Tsunami
Warning Centre
(PTWC) Hawaii
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26 Dec 2004: Tsunami hits Asia without public warning
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By mid 2014…
• Science of detection & assessment improved
• Warning • Warning issue time reduced
• More ways to get word out to those most at risk
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Teleuse@BOP: Sayar Singh
Rajastan, India (2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CLnA635uG4
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Teleuse@BOP: Poonam Devi
Samasthipur, Bihar, India (2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdUdM39Z0Hk
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We don’t always win!
• Sri Lanka standard time
– British set it at GMT+5:30 (same as India)
– Daylight saving time: first proposed in 1983
– Major power shortage 1996: idea revived– Major power shortage 1996: idea revived
– 1996: GMT + 6:30
– 1997-2005: GMT + 6:00
– 2006 April: return to GMT + 5:30 (lobbying by
astrologers, Buddhist monks & nationalists)
– Public intellectuals’ arguments ignored!
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Sri Lanka Electricity Demand
Load curve 2012
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http://www.scidev.net/global/policy/opinion/science-loses-in-sri-lankas-debate-on-standard-ti.html
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SAY IT WITH SAY IT WITH
PICTURES!
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In the 1850’s produced a remarkable graphic showing the causes of death of hospitalised
soldiers during the Crimean war. The graphic convinced British Parliament to improve sanitary
conditions, which lead to a major decline in death in many areas.
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Data + Passion + Good delivery =
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http://www.gapminder.org
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Example: Telegeography
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The world in tweets…
Mapping the Global Twitter Heartbeat. First Monday journal,
May 2013 http://tiny.cc/TwtMap
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Tactical Technology Collective
http://visualisingadvocacy.org/
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Social Media transforming
public communication of S&T
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Online collaboration: Scientists and the social network. Nature, 13 Aug 2014
http://www.nature.com/news/online-collaboration-scientists-and-the-social-network-1.15711
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Online collaboration: Scientists and the social network. Nature, 13 Aug 2014
http://www.nature.com/news/online-collaboration-scientists-and-the-social-network-1.15711
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Personal branding?
• I-Me-Mine world: first person narrative is widely accepted
• We must have some standing + interesting standing + interesting or provocative things to say (& say it well)
• Show up, listen to others, and speak up when appropriate
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Remember the ‘Long Tails’
• Publishing online (in free access, well indexed,
ideally popular platforms e.g. media websites)
• Links come up in search results for months, yrs
after first appearance (unless removed)after first appearance (unless removed)
• Establishes our engagement with issues
• …also records our positions (which can evolve)
• Opponents may ‘dig up’ inconsistencies!
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Summing up…
• One size doesn’t fit all: customise!
• Influencing public mind & policy
process: slow, incremental process!
• Keep turning up, speaking out
• Remember the value of PASSION!
• Debate everyone with courtesy
• Pick & choose your battles
• Acknowledge uncertainties & gaps in
current knowledge
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Blog: http://nalakagunawardene.comBlog: http://nalakagunawardene.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NalakaG
Column: http://collidecolumn.wordpress.com
Papers: https://independent.academia.edu/NalakaGunawardene