In Spring 2018, 500 Women Scientists organized our Science Salons for Puerto Rico Campaign to both celebrate Women’s History Month and raise money to support our partners at CienciaPR, as they worked to transform science education in Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and María. Pods across the United States hosted Science Salons — or public talks — in coffee shops, bars, and living rooms. The campaign allowed pod members to share their scientific expertise with their communities, while building their communication skills.

Over March and April 2018, 15 pods participated, hosting events that turned out over 1,000 guests across our communities. We raised $7,500 through these events for CienciaPR. The campaign has had lasting impact across our organization, which were detailed in this blog post for the POSTDOCket. Members of the CienciaPR network and Spanish-speaking allies have since agreed to help translate our resources to broaden their reach and widen its impact beyond English-speaking audiences. Pods also partnered with organizations like Taste of Science, Graduate Women in Science, and NerdNite, as well as with local establishments that hosted the events, allowing them to host regular events in the year since their first Science Salon.

Part of the mission of 500 Women Scientists is to give women the tools and training to be a public voice for science. To provide support for our pods, we’ve tapped into a number of resources from our network of scientists.

• Dr. Christine O’Connell from the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science will lead speakers through an online training for different levels of communication expertise.

• Our NYC Pod has volunteered their membership to act as coaches to give volunteer speakers one-on-one practice and advice leading up to their public talks. 500 Women Scientists NYC has hosted a number of public science events, and their membership is made of many science communication professionals.

• We’ve created a guide to help Science Salon organizers put together a successful event, outlining important steps that need to happen along with way with a suggested timeline.

We encourage participating pods to donate the profits from the Science Salons to benefit Ciencia Puerto Rico (CienciaPR) and support their campaign to transform science education in Puerto Rico, with a focus on natural disasters. Ciencia PR is a global community of scientists, students, educators and allies who believe that science can empower individuals with the knowledge, capacity, and agency to improve their lives and society. The Science Salons for Puerto Rico campaign will give pods the tools and experience to continue hosting salons to benefit organizations and initiatives in their own communities.

As a women-led nonprofit, CienciaPR taps into its rich and diverse community to democratize science and transform science education and career training in Puerto Rico. We’ve partnered with CienciaPR because our missions to democratize science and foster agency among underrepresented communities are well-aligned. While CienciaPR focuses on Puerto Rico and its diaspora, their strategy can serve as a model to other communities that are underrepresented in or disengaged from science. We are thrilled to support their ongoing efforts and learn from their organization’s successes in building capacity and fostering community.

Immediately after Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated Puerto Rico, CienciaPR worked with the Department of Education to create disaster-related and project-based science lesson plans that could allow displaced students to continue learning. Early in 2018, CienciaPR will launch a pilot project to train educators to implement four science lessons in natural disaster and environment related topics: renewable energy, environmental sustainability, clean and potable water, and terrestrial ecosystems. Later in the year, they will bring together scientists and educators to co-create project-based science lessons that foster creativity, entrepreneurship, and critical thinking skills. These new lessons will serve as a platform for students to work together to address the challenges they see in their communities. This pilot project kicks off the implementation of CienciaPR’s new 10-year strategic plan of transforming science education in Puerto Rico, by engaging its community of scientists, educators, and students to bring discovery, experimentation, and problem-solving to the classroom in ways that are culturally and socially relevant to Puerto Rican children.

Of course, you can donate to CienciaPR at any time outside of the Science Salons campaign. You can also read more about CienciaPR's strategic vision in their latest op-ed for Scientific American, "Rebuilding Science Education in Puerto Rico."