Symposium 2013 disasters and science communication

Background

The 2013 Symposium was one of the first international conferences to be confirmed to be held in Christchurch since the February 2010 quake. The Symposium programme will be anchored by science communication insights from the Canterbury quake – but also feature a wide range of other New Zealand and global natural world disasters from which we can all learn. The 2013 Symposium is undoubtedly the strongest conference programme SCANZ has assembled. The programme will include international case studies such as the devastating Japanese tsunami of 2011 and provide world-class content of interest to journalists, science communicators, academics and scientists from around the globe.

Overview

This conference will explore the challenges of communicating science during major events, from earthquakes, tsunamis and pandemics to agricultural disease outbreaks, as well as sustainability and disaster prevention planning. It will build on the growing body of research that has taken place in the wake of the Canterbury earthquakes and look at disaster planning, communication and resilience issues both in New Zealand and around the world.