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Combining
science and talent
Fiona
Ratcliff, British High Commission, United Kingdom
My
World-Wide Day in Science was spent organising an international
energy forum we are hoping to hold later this year. I spent
the day collating invitee lists and putting together a work
plan for the next 6 months. While this is not the most exciting
of tasks, this is a major event so this work needs to be done
early.
Organising this event and others like it, forms a large portion
of my job at present. This is the second international forum
I have been involved with this year and they provide the opportunity
to meet Ministers from various governments, both in Australia
and overseas, and to meet leading business people.
As a science officer, I
am also involved in policy work and setting up collaborations
between scientists in different countries, meaning I
get to meet world-class scientists and travel.
In terms of my career path, my current job has provided the
opportunity for me to meet a range
of people involved in
science research, science policy and
science commercialisation. For the mean time,
I plan to keep working in this area as I currently have some
freedom in my work.
As I initiate a lot of my work, I can choose
projects I am interested in and can
work to enhance the view of science in more
than one country.
I was always interested in science at school but like many,
I didn't really
think about a career in science. I
started a Fine Arts degree before finally
realising science was for me. During my Bachelor
of Science, I majored in
neuroscience and after completing a brief research project
in a lab, I began a Master of Science, majoring in science
communication.
When I was at school, I
never knew science communication existed.
It's a diverse field, ranging from journalism, to working
in science centres, designing communication strategies for
companies and working as a science officer.
It's a great way to combine an interest in
science with other talents, whether they are
computer skills, writing skills, acting skills or just a desire
to talk to people about science.
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