Science Sisters is a YouTube interview series and podcast hosted by Dr. Iris van Zelst. Lighthearted in tone, it explores different career paths, academic life, and science communication in the planetary and geosciences. The majority of the guests on the episodes are female and/or non-white to show a diverse range of role models in STEM and celebrate women in science. Together with the guest, Iris goes into the highs and lows of being a researcher and discusses issues in academia, such as the lack of permanent jobs in science and sexism. So far, two seasons of Science Sisters have been produced with topics including ethical fieldwork, switching careers, science communication, postdoc life, leadership, women in science, job applications, postdoc hopping, outreach, publishing, feeling incompetent, astronaut training, toxic academia, and how to build a research group. 

Here, we present the project and selected statistics from the YouTube channel like viewership, as well as some key nuggets of wisdom dealt out during the episodes. Additionally, we show how we use Science Sisters to start conversations on these topics in our own institutes: we organise a parallel seminar series where we watch the premieres of the episodes live on YouTube and afterwards have a discussion on the episode topic with the episode guest attending online. This has resulted in a greater understanding of each other and more cohesion within the institute. Early career scientists in particular say that Science Sisters is extremely useful to learn about life as a researcher and they enjoy the chatty, entertaining quality of the interviews.  

How to cite: van Zelst, I., Cano Amoros, M., and Shivkumar, H.: Science Sisters: interviews with diverse STEM role models on their journeys through science, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-744, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-744, 2024.

There is no denying that we are living in a state of climate emergency, and yet across both astronomy and globally, the shift away from “business as usual” towards more sustainable practices seems too slow to realise meaningful change on the required timescale. One of the key challenges in the current situation is knowing exactly what we can do to improve things, or what actions can be taken at different scales ranging from individuals to institutions. As has been previously discussed by Stevens et al. 2020, carbon emissions associated with travel are a large fraction of the total emissions produced by astronomers in our professional capacity, and still we are yet to see a significant change in physical travel for meetings, conferences or collaboration (e.g. Figure 1). 

Our work as part of “The Future of Meetings” (TFOM) community of practice (consisting of people working in the field of astronomy, professional scientists in other disciplines such as climate science, computational chemistry and archaeology, and broader academic and industry contacts) has focused especially on the gains that can be made by the widespread adoption of effective online and hybrid meeting practices. The benefits of embracing online interaction are huge when considering sustainability and the climate, as the successful enacting of online meetings can significantly reduce the need to travel physically, whether that travel be locally to a workplace, nationally for collaborations and meetings or internationally for large-scale conferences. These benefits carry through to other important aspects of improving astronomy, such as increasing accessibility where barriers exist for in-person travel and enhancing inclusivity for groups that have been historically excluded from traditional meeting practices. It is clear when we measure attendance at meetings and conferences (Figure 2) that the attendee population, and their associated carbon emissions, are dominated by the most wealthy and privileged countries.

Astronomy especially can provide a unique voice in the global conversation about the future of meetings, interaction and distributed work, considering additionally the significant carbon demands of our field in terms of travel, observatory operations and computing. Our work by default focuses on looking outwards into the Universe, and in placing our experience on Earth in the bigger picture of what is happening beyond our planet. We are a field with a long history of innovative global collaboration, with tendencies towards early adoption of new technologies as well as collaborative teams that are distributed by their nature either across countries or continents. As a field, we have also taken significant steps already towards tangibly increasing the diversity of contributions to advancing research in astronomy, moving beyond the concept of acknowledging the challenges and focusing on measurable solutions.

The recent publication of “Climate Change for Astronomers” (Figure 3), edited by Travis Rector, focuses on addressing the climate crisis specifically from the astronomy perspective. The final chapter in this book was contributed by our group, with a focus on practical advice and examples that are intended to give people a sense of what can be done to measurably improve the sustainability of our meetings and interactions, from the individual through to institutional and international practices.

In this presentation, we will give an overview of the contents of the chapter and provide additional context to it for those interested to make use of our advice. We will cover: 1) introduction to TFOM and context around our general work, 2) the history and evolution of meetings in astronomy, 3) motivations for meetings and interactions in astronomy, 4) the benefits of online interaction in improving our “business as usual” practices in astronomy, 5) the role of technology in facilitating these improvements, 6) suggestions for next steps, 7) examples of common concerns about online and hybrid meetings and how to address them, 8) example case studies of online and hybrid meetings, and 9) looking to the future. 

We especially hope to engage with the EPSC community about their experiences in this area and the unique challenges facing this segment of the global astronomy community, and form connections with those in attendance with a look towards the potential for future collaboration in the context of TFOM and ways of tangibly addressing the climate emergency. We firmly believe that online interaction offers immense opportunities for improving both our practices and our experiences in astronomy, and that by embracing these possibilities and the benefits they provide, we can truly go “beyond being there” in a way that also helps preserve our unique place in the Universe for future generations.

Figures

Figure 1: Indicative conference formats in astronomy as a function of time, based on meetings recorded by the Canadian Astronomy Data Centre. The format of a meeting was determined based on referring to the location provided for each meeting (where "online" aims to capture both online-only and hybrid meetings), and thus is likely to be incomplete in terms of meetings which provide hybrid access (if not indicated by the location text). Similarly, the measurement of cancelled meetings is a lower limit since it is likely many cancelled meetings do not feed back into the CADC listing. 2024 is incomplete given it is a year still in progress. While we saw a significant increase in meetings providing online access around the COVID-19 pandemic, this trend has reversed almost completely as of 2024. Credit: Vanessa Moss, for this abstract.   

Figure 2: Number of conference attendees at astronomy conferences, normalised by country population, in 2019 as a function of Human Development Index (HDI) for a given country. The colour scale and size of the markers show the total amount of travel emissions for each country. Circles below the dashed line represent the distribution of the HDI for countries with no attendance at astronomy/astrophysics meetings in 2019. Credit: Gokus et al. 2024 (Figure 7). 

Figure 3: Cover of the recently published IOP Astronomy book “Climate Change for Astronomers”, edited by Travis Rector. The TFOM community contributed Chapter 19 to this book: “The Future of Meetings”. Credit: Rector et al. 2024.

How to cite: Moss, V., Rees, G., Hotan, A., Kerrison, E., Tasker, E., Kobayashi, R., Trenham, C., Ekers, R., and Rector, T.: The Future of Meetings: How can we adjust our practices to meet sustainably yet meaningfully?, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-705, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-705, 2024.

The Europlanet Science Conference (EPSC) is a cornerstone event that shapes the future of planetary sciences. Ensuring accessibility for researchers with disabilities is not just a matter of compliance, but a fundamental driver of scientific innovation and excellence. Diverse perspectives, including those from researchers with disabilities, enrich scientific discourse, foster creativity, and lead to more comprehensive and impactful discoveries. This abstract highlights the critical importance of inclusivity and presents practical strategies to enhance accessibility at EPSC.

Full participation of researchers with disabilities ensures that the scientific community benefits from the broadest range of talents and insights. Addressing current barriers, such as physical obstacles, inadequate assistive technologies, and inaccessible materials, is essential to achieving this goal. Proposed solutions include selecting fully accessible venues, providing materials in multiple formats, offering real-time captioning and sign language interpretation, utilizing technology to support remote participation, and training staff in best practices for accessibility. Additionally, establishing clear policies and feedback mechanisms can help maintain a welcoming and inclusive environment.

By implementing these strategies, EPSC can set a standard for accessibility in scientific conferences, demonstrating a commitment to inclusivity that benefits the entire planetary science community. Ensuring that all researchers can engage fully and contribute their unique perspectives will lead to richer scientific dialogue and more robust advancements in the field.

How to cite: Calders, S. and Piccialli, A.: Promoting Inclusive Participation at the Europlanet Science Conference: Strategies for Enhanced Accessibility, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-1267, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-1267, 2024.

In November 2023, the Europa Clipper science team held their group meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico, chosen in part because of the existing partnership with University of Puerto Rico (UPR) and Here2Observe (H2O) program [1, 2]. Leveraging this opportunity, several moments were dedicated to interact with the broadest audience possible around bilingual events in English and Spanish (when possible). Overall, these activities required 56 volunteers and reached over 1500 people.

Why include education activities in a science team meeting?

The prime objective of science team meetings is to share updates on mission and science topics and encourage collaborations. However, leveraging this concentration of scientists and engineers in one location can be a great tool to build connections with local communities all over the country, especially underserved communities. NASA missions are a great vector to engage the public, inspire the next generation, and help provide a sense of ownership of these publicly funded projects to a broader audience. It is also a cost, carbon and time efficient way to connect with the community. 

Secondary school students: hands-on activities

15 local schools traveled to the conference where they engaged with different hands-on activities modeling complex concepts in an easily-understood way led by Clipper team members. All activities were aligned with Next Generation Science Standards [4], relevant to their curriculum and easily adaptable to different age groups. Four activities were selected from JPL’s Education Office for their relevance to Europa: 

• Solar system scroll [5]: comprehending distances in the solar system
• Ocean worlds density [6]: playing with the mass and density of known elements to predict Europa’s interior layers
• Ocean worlds magnetism [7]: exploring the relationship between magnetism and electricity to model how scientists discovered Europa’s salty ocean
• Mapping alien worlds [8]: build a planetary surface from simulated radar measurements using colored building blocks

Such an event is scalable to the number of volunteers and type of venue available. Here, we had a high engagement of science team members which allowed us to maximize the impact to the extent the local infrastructure allowed.

Fig. 1: Ocean worlds magnetism in action.

Fig. 2: Mapping alien worlds in action.

University students: Poster session and panel discussion 

Europa Clipper sponsored a poster session for 105 university students which followed the model of a professional science conference. They presented their work to Clipper team members, as well as representatives of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate’s Planetary Science Division (PSD), giving plenty of opportunities for small group discussions about science and career. 

The session was accompanied by a panel discussion with Lori Glaze, PSD director, Bonnie Buratti, Deputy Project Scientist on Europa Clipper, and UPR professors Abel Mendez, Raiza Quintero, Carmen Pantoja, Mayra Santos, and Desiree Cotto-Figueroa, who spoke about research opportunities for students at UPR.

Fig. 3: UPR student presenting their work to scientists of the Europa Clipper mission.

Fig. 4: UPR students presenting their work to Lori Glaze, director of PSD.

Elementary schools: Livestream event in Spanish 

The reach and accessibility of in-person events is always limited. To expand beyond that, a live stream broadcast in Spanish was organized for elementary schools across Puerto Rico - 82 schools signed up. An interview-style conversation between Brandon Rodriguez, Education Specialist at JPL, and Tim Larson, Deputy Project Manager for Europa Clipper was followed by a Q&A session. Participating classrooms also received a packet of information and activities to continue the experience beyond the stream. 

Public: Star Party in a unique location

Finally, a public event was organized in collaboration with local Solar System Ambassadors, the science museum EcoExploratorio and Sociedad de Astronomía de Puerto Rico, at the National Historic Site Castillo San Felipe del Morro in Old San Juan. Sadly, the weather did not cooperate and we had to contend with the rain. Under a tent, the audience attended a series of presentations by Europa Clipper’s leadership and our hosts. The highlight was a reading of Ada Limon’s “Praise Of Mystery” poem in English by Roque Raquel Salas Rivera followed by their own translation in Spanish. 

Fig. 5: Roque Raquel Salas Rivera at star party.

Lessons learned

Including outreach and education activities during the Europa Clipper science team meeting was very successful. It deepened the team’s relationship with Puerto Rico and demonstrated the commitment of the mission to our local partners with whom we built these events in the context of a broader and consistent relationship. Team members found these interactions both fun and meaningful, and a large majority want to continue to include significant outreach activities in future science team meetings. 

We also learned valuable lessons:

• More Spanish speakers needed: despite most students in Puerto Rico studying English in schools, we found varying levels of English fluency. The assistance of our few Spanish-speaking team members and Observers was essential and greatly appreciated. 
• Audience knowledge shouldn’t be assumed: e.g. the solar system scroll activity assumes the audience knows the names of the planets and their order. We adjusted in real time by providing images of all the planets with their names in English and Spanish.
•  Navigating technical difficulties: many schools were unable to log in to the live stream event, but a recording was shared with students the same day.
• Contingencies for outdoor events: we can’t control the weather!

The presence of the science team meeting of NASA’s latest flagship mission in Puerto Rico was significant and highly covered by the local media. These events showed how much the public is enthusiastic for their space missions, and science in general, when we meet them where they are.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Europa Clipper Project. We acknowledge the contributions of the Planetary ReaCH group; the work and participation of the Clipper H2O current students and alumni as well as all the Europa Clipper team members who volunteered their time, energy and passion for these activities; and the support and participation of the JPL Education Office and NASA’s Science Mission Directorate’s Planetary Science Division.

References: 

[1] https://science.nasa.gov/planetary-science/programs/here-to-observe-h2o/

[2] Klima et al. EPSC 2024

[3] https://www.lpi.usra.edu/planetary-reach/

[4] https://www.nextgenscience.org/

[5] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/solar-system-scroll/

[6] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/discovering-alien-oceans-density/

[7] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/discovering-alien-oceans-magnetism/

[8] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/teach/activity/mapping-alien-worlds/

How to cite: Belgacem, I., Phillips, C. B., Matiella Novak, A., Quinones Velazquez, L., Rodriguez, B., Mcintyre, O., and Pappalardo, R.: Leveraging science team meetings to build connections with local communities: Europa Clipper y la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-278, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-278, 2024.

Introduction: The Here to Observe (H₂O) program was established in 2021 to pair mission teams with institutions with large populations of underrepresented and historically marginalized students, to provide an opportunity for participants in the program an insider’s view of how NASA missions operate, as well as one-on-one mentorship of the students by science team members [1]. By pairing a mission team directly with faculty and student leads, the goal was to co-create a program that is tailored to the students’ needs, schedules, and interests, without adding significant additional burden to the mission’s science team. For the initial pilot program, the Europa Clipper team was paired with the University of Puerto Rico. With the formal announcement of the program in ROSES, Europa Clipper is now paired with a partnership between the Ohio Space Grant and Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortia.

H₂O Program History: The initial concept of inviting students to observe a science team meeting was piloted in 2020, when graduate students were invited to submit short statements of interest and several missions agreed to invite them to attend a virtual science team meeting. This initial pilot has mixed success, as there was little time for engagement before the meetings, and students who were not already familiar with mission work had little frame of reference to understand a lot of the jargon and technical details that they observed.

Based on feedback from this process, NASA initiated a formal pilot program in 2021, championed by David Smith. The pilot aimed to co-create the program with specific institutions, specifically targeting those without active involvement with NASA missions. Unlike the initial formulation, in this pilot, the goal was to pair undergraduate, rather than graduate, students with mentors from missions. Although faculty contacts were involved, the university side of project was spearheaded by student leaders, who helped coordinate the student teams and provide input on how to tailor program activities to meet students’ needs and interests. On the mission side, the goal was to provide a welcoming environment and direct interactions with scientists, but, importantly, to be non-intrusive to mission activities.

Three mission teams agreed to participate in the formal pilot: Europa Clipper, Dragonfly, and Lucy, and their university partners were the University of Puerto Rico, Virginia State University, and Howard University. For this pilot, teams worked to design a school-year-long program that would provide background sessions to prepare the students before the science team observing opportunities, and, ideally, also provide additional opportunities to the students to sit in on mission activities throughout the year.

Europa Clipper H₂O Pilot Results: The H₂O cohort in Puerto Rico was initially led by two students, Jorge Y. Coppin-Massanet and Andrea Ortiz-Cana. With contacts at the university and within the Puerto Rico Space Grant, student applications were solicited, with over 100 student applications received each year. The student leaders worked to down-select to 10 students, plus alternates, in case students became overburdened and needed to withdraw from the program. Likewise, the list of mission mentors included backup mentors, to ensure that each student would have a mentor, even if their assigned mentor was no longer able to support meetings.

Mentors and students were asked to expect to meet one-on-one for ~1 hour per month, and students were also provided one organized event per month, as well. In addition, science-team-wide activities, including monthly mission updates as well as a bi-weekly lecture series, which is often focused on discussing science topics, were made open to students, whenever possible. The organized events each month included open discussions with team members, a career panel in Spanish, introductory presentations about NASA missions as well as the Europa Clipper mission.

Each year, two students from the past year stepped into the role as student leads, providing continuity and experience as the team worked to improve the program. The program was very successful, largely in part to the hard work and dedication of the original student leaders, who remained involved in an advisory capacity throughout the program.

Local Engagement: In 2023, the decision was made by the Clipper Project to host a Europa Clipper science team meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to provide an opportunity for students and alumni of the H2O program to meet the scientists they had interacted with in person (Fig. 1). The team worked with the contacts at the University of Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico Space Grant to design and run a number of public engagement activities, which were attended by hundreds of students from middle school through university (Fig. 2).

Further Evolution of the H2O Program: Beginning in 2023, the H₂O program was formalized in the NASA ROSES call, with applicants funded to support student involvement. The new program, described in detail in [1], includes additional infrastructure for mentoring, formal program evaluation, and mission advocate support. Students are also provided self-guided modules with additional background information about planetary exploration. NASA is committed to the success of this program, and supportive of additional mission involvement.

Europa Clipper is currently officially partnered with both the Ohio and Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortia, with six students participating from each consortium. Activities are similar to those offered in the past, but with the goal of at least one visit to each home institution. The team looks forward to interacting with students from both regions, to share the excitement of Europa exploration.

 Acknowledgments: We are grateful to NASA and Europa Clipper for enduring support of the H₂O program. 

References: [1] D. Smith et al. (2024), Updates from Planetary Science Division’s Here to Observe (H2O) Program. LPSC 55th, this volume.

How to cite: Klima, R. L., Ortiz Cana, A., Smith, D., Novak, A. M., Williams, E., Romero, R., Morell Marrero, G., Hale, T., and Pappalardo, R.: Here to Observe (H20) and Europa Clipper, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-1225, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-1225, 2024.

The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) is the annual meeting place of the Europlanet Society. First held in Berlin in 2006 and regularly attracting more than 1,000 participants, EPSC is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions while providing a unique space for networking and exchange of experiences. For an event with this dimension and importance, it is crucial to think, discuss and improve the diversity, inclusiveness, and accessibility plan of EPSC to enable as wide an access as possible for the entire planetary science community worldwide. This is one of the main tasks of the Europlanet Diversity Committee. 

The Diversity Committee of the Europlanet Society dates back to 2017, when a Diversity Working Group was formed after a Diversity breakfast during EPSC 2017 in Riga, Latvia (1). This working group was ratified as a formal Diversity Committee during EPSC 2018 in Berlin, during the Europlanet General Assembly. Our main aims are to promote equality, diversity and inclusivity in STEM subjects, with a particular focus on EPSC and workshops. The Committee members are the diversity officers from all the Europlanet Regional Hubs, in addition to representatives from the Europlanet Early Careers (EPEC) network and the Europlanet Executive Board. This structure enables close links between the Diversity Committee, the Hubs and other Europlanet structures, and ensures that diversity is embedded within all activities of the Europlanet Society.  

The target groups that have been addressed by the Europlanet Diversity Committee are mainly: women, early career participants, researchers from the under-represented European countries, non-EU participants, colleagues with disabilities, people of color, other minorities, and allies. Allies are generally defined as white, male, from western countries, in an advanced career path, who are willing and interested in taking action to change the community towards a more inclusive and welcoming society. Each year, the Committee organizes various opportunities during EPSC to open a dialogue with the community, to collect their needs and to address solutions. 

Measures implemented through the activities of Diversity Committee in the venue selection and operation of EPSC include: provision of food suitable for those with various dietary requirements, access to gender neutral washroom facilities, a raising of awareness for conveners regarding implicit bias and the importance of having diverse panel members, and generally normalizing the promotion and discussion of diversity in STEM at academic meetings. This year, for EPSC2024 in Berlin, for the second time, we are offering childcare, free of charge, to parents with young children, in close collaboration with the Local Organizing Committee (LOC). The provision of a ‘Silent Room’ is now a tradition at EPSC, enabling participants to find refuge from the crowded conference, and offering a private and comfortable space for nursing mothers, prayers, or any other needs requiring isolation for a short time. Accessibility to the venue is always closely reviewed by the LOC and the Diversity Committee. Offering the congress in hybrid mode is another way of ensuring accessibility for those who can’t travel to attend the congress. 

Exchange with the community and collecting feedback from the individuals are vital to a committee trying to ensure a diverse and inclusive atmosphere. In order to achieve this, we organize an annual Diversity Roundtable, Diversity sessions in the scientific programme, a diversity keynote talk during the ice-breaker on Sunday prior to EPSC, and various types of workshops and training. Feedback from all EPSC participants is also solicited through a form that asks respondents to share their thoughts and comments on what they liked and didn’t like about the meeting, and suggestions for change at future meetings. The summary of these findings are discussed by the EPSC and Diversity Committees to ensure that lessons are learned and the meeting adapts to the needs of the community.

The Diversity Committee of the Europlanet Society aims to highlight diversity within the planetary science community and to reduce the gender gap on Wikipedia. Therefore, we have organized, in collaboration with Women in Red and WikiDonne, since EPSC 2020, the Planetary Science Wiki Edit-a-thon. An Edit-a-thon (‘edit marathon’) is an organized event where editors from an online community (such as Wikipedia in this case) write, translate and improve articles on a specific topic. During EPSC, we provide basic training to start editing/writing Wikipedia articles. We also meet regularly throughout the year to continue to add and translate articles of women biographies and other under-represented communities in planetary science.

References: (1) Campbell et al., EWASS 2018

How to cite: Adeli, S., Piccialli, A., Heward, A., Vandaele, A. C., and Europlanet Diversity Committee, T.: How to make EPSC events more diverse - Diversity Committee’s activities and plans, Europlanet Science Congress 2024, Berlin, Germany, 8–13 Sep 2024, EPSC2024-1363, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc2024-1363, 2024.