About ECSJ 2022
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Thank you for attending the conference! It was great!
Science journalists are always happy to be reporting science, and are supposed to be good at communicating science. But are we as diligent when it comes to investigating science? Perhaps we should not be quite as professionally cynical as political journalists, but neither should we aspire to be enlisted as science’s influencers.
This year’s ECSJ-conference is located in the historical building where superconductivity was discovered by Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes in 1911. His laboratory is considered to be the first large research institute in the modern sense of the word. Since then, science as an institution has grown exponentially, and has become a force in modern society that no one can ignore. Consequently, science gets lots of funding, lots of exposure, and is ascribed a lot of authority – most of it well deserved, no doubt.
But science journalists should not limit themselves to reporting the successes of science as promulgated by science communicaton departments. At all levels of the scientific enterprise, be it individual publications, institutes or entire research programmes, they should question what they see or hear. Is peer-review as reliable as it purportedly has ever been? Is science immune to group think? To what extent is science recruited as a scapegoat for political agendas? Does society actually need this?
The conference will host several renowned speakers who take a critical look at these aspects of the scientific enterprise, and be a stage for discussion. We don’t expect you to sit back and listen, but to stand up and engage. None of which will detract from our common truth that science is a force for good in our society and an essential part of our future.
But in a time when ‘just follow the science’ has become a matter of fierce political debate, conspiracy theories and even riots in the streets, science journalism needs to rethink its position in the complex force field between following and investigating science.
For photos of this year’s conference, click here!
The European Conference of Science Journalism is a conference for professional science journalists and related professions. In addition, it is a moment in time to meet each other in real life, if that is possible, and to continue discussing the profession of science journalist.
Everyone involved with science journalism is welcome. The event itself is aimed at science journalists and the profession. We'd also like to welcome science communicators and other closely related professions.
Membership of a European association for science journalism is not compulsory, not in the least because such associations are not active everywhere. If you live in a country with an active association but you are not a member yourself, we advise you to become a member there.
Elisabeth Bik is a Dutch microbiologist who was a researcher at Stanford University untill 2018, after which she became a full time science integrity consultant. She founded the blog Microbiome digest (https://microbiomedigest.com/), and is very active on twitter.
She has pioneered a ‘forensic’ approach to quality control, by painstakingly checking images, mainly in biomedical publications, for duplications and other unacceptable ways of manipulation. She has identified hundreds of papers with serious flaws, resulting in many retractions.
At ECSJ she will give the key note lecture.
Elisabeth Bik is a Dutch microbiologist who was a researcher at Stanford University untill 2018, after which she became a full time science integrity consultant. She founded the blog Microbiome digest (https://microbiomedigest.com/), and is very active on twitter.
She has pioneered a ‘forensic’ approach to quality control, by painstakingly checking images, mainly in biomedical publications, for duplications and other unacceptable ways of manipulation. She has identified hundreds of papers with serious flaws, resulting in many retractions.
At ECSJ she will give the key note lecture.
Lise Barnéoud is a French freelance science journalist and author specialized in medical and environmental topics. Her work has appeared among others in Le Monde, Mediapart and Science et Vie Junior. In 2021 she published the book Vaccins, petit guide par temps de Covid.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Lise Barnéoud is a French freelance science journalist and author specialized in medical and environmental topics. Her work has appeared among others in Le Monde, Mediapart and Science et Vie Junior. In 2021 she published the book Vaccins, petit guide par temps de Covid.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Asha ten Broeke is a Dutch writer and science journalist. She's written several books and is a columnist for Dutch daily newspaper De Volkskrant.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Asha ten Broeke is a Dutch writer and science journalist. She's written several books and is a columnist for Dutch daily newspaper De Volkskrant.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Fiona is an Australian/British journalist who worked as a freelancer since 2014, reporting from South Asia and the Middle East for Al Jazeera, Mongabay, SBS Australia, Middle East Eye, and SciDev.Net. She joined SciDev.Net’s editorial team just weeks before the global COVID-19 outbreak, in February 2020.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Fiona is an Australian/British journalist who worked as a freelancer since 2014, reporting from South Asia and the Middle East for Al Jazeera, Mongabay, SBS Australia, Middle East Eye, and SciDev.Net. She joined SciDev.Net’s editorial team just weeks before the global COVID-19 outbreak, in February 2020.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Ilaria Cianchetta is the editor-in-chief of Chem Catalysis. After her PhD in chemistry she moved to Los Angeles for a postdoc at the Getty Conservation Institute and subsequently joined Cell Press as one of the inaugural editors of Chem. She has been working in publishing since 2016 and in 2020 moved to Amsterdam to lead the launch of Chem Catalysis.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Ilaria Cianchetta is the editor-in-chief of Chem Catalysis. After her PhD in chemistry she moved to Los Angeles for a postdoc at the Getty Conservation Institute and subsequently joined Cell Press as one of the inaugural editors of Chem. She has been working in publishing since 2016 and in 2020 moved to Amsterdam to lead the launch of Chem Catalysis.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Rebecca Clear is the Corporate Responsibility Communications Director at Elsevier. Before joining Elsevier last year, she spent five years as head of media relations for conservation NGO WWF International. Earlier in her career, Rebecca worked with the BBC on radio news and sport publicity, and media and stakeholder communications around diversity, moving on to work in PR agencies on B2B comms, and on social issues with various non-profits. At ECSJ she will bring this experience to bear in moderating the sessions about inclusion in research and journalism.
Rebecca Clear is the Corporate Responsibility Communications Director at Elsevier. Before joining Elsevier last year, she spent five years as head of media relations for conservation NGO WWF International. Earlier in her career, Rebecca worked with the BBC on radio news and sport publicity, and media and stakeholder communications around diversity, moving on to work in PR agencies on B2B comms, and on social issues with various non-profits. At ECSJ she will bring this experience to bear in moderating the sessions about inclusion in research and journalism.
Anne Dijkstra is an assistant professor in Science Communication in Twente. She studies the changing relationship between science and society and is involved in several international projects.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Anne Dijkstra is an assistant professor in Science Communication in Twente. She studies the changing relationship between science and society and is involved in several international projects.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Martin Enserink is an international news editor at Science, based in the Netherlands.
At ECSJ he will give a 'State of science journalism' speech during the Grand finale.
Martin Enserink is an international news editor at Science, based in the Netherlands.
At ECSJ he will give a 'State of science journalism' speech during the Grand finale.
Laura Fortunato is an associate Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Oxford. In October 2016 she launched 'Reproducible Research Oxford', a project based at the School of Anthropology and the Oxford e-Research Centre (OeRC).
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Laura Fortunato is an associate Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Oxford. In October 2016 she launched 'Reproducible Research Oxford', a project based at the School of Anthropology and the Oxford e-Research Centre (OeRC).
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Roel van der Heijden has ten years of experience as a freelance science journalist. He has written for newspapers and magazines, but mostly for the popular scientific website NEMO Kennislink.
Now he has started a business as 'freelance stargazer' with a living room planetarium. He organizes stargazing sessions on the streets, during events and for people at home (www.huiskamerplanetarium.nl).
At ECSJ he will bring his self-built telescope to do some sungazing on the restaurant terrace.
Roel van der Heijden has ten years of experience as a freelance science journalist. He has written for newspapers and magazines, but mostly for the popular scientific website NEMO Kennislink.
Now he has started a business as 'freelance stargazer' with a living room planetarium. He organizes stargazing sessions on the streets, during events and for people at home (www.huiskamerplanetarium.nl).
At ECSJ he will bring his self-built telescope to do some sungazing on the restaurant terrace.
Desiree Hoving is a a program creator and moderator from the Netherlands. Previously, she worked as a science journalist for various media.
At ECSJ she will open the conference and host the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Desiree Hoving is a a program creator and moderator from the Netherlands. Previously, she worked as a science journalist for various media.
At ECSJ she will open the conference and host the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Arnout Jaspers is a science journalist specialising in anything that can be sensibly quantified. He has written extensively about physics, astronomy, climate, the environment, nuclear energy, mathematics and cryptography for Dutch, English and American media.
At ECSJ he will give a presentation titled 'Meaningless death counts: what the WHO gets wrong every time'.
Arnout Jaspers is a science journalist specialising in anything that can be sensibly quantified. He has written extensively about physics, astronomy, climate, the environment, nuclear energy, mathematics and cryptography for Dutch, English and American media.
At ECSJ he will give a presentation titled 'Meaningless death counts: what the WHO gets wrong every time'.
Lucas Keijning is a freelance science communicator from the Netherlands. He uses playful formats to get people curious and investigate the world around them. He worked at NEMO Science Museum for ten years. Now he trains scientists to convey their stories in the best way, moderates events and builds chain reactions every now and then.
At ECSJ he is the quizmaster during the Grand finale.
Lucas Keijning is a freelance science communicator from the Netherlands. He uses playful formats to get people curious and investigate the world around them. He worked at NEMO Science Museum for ten years. Now he trains scientists to convey their stories in the best way, moderates events and builds chain reactions every now and then.
At ECSJ he is the quizmaster during the Grand finale.
Annemarie Kerkhoff is a linguist (PhD from Utrecht University) and senior researcher at Auris, an organisation for children with hearing, speech and language disorders.
She is also a freelance science writer.
At ECSJ she will be moderating the session 'Behind the hype'.
Annemarie Kerkhoff is a linguist (PhD from Utrecht University) and senior researcher at Auris, an organisation for children with hearing, speech and language disorders.
She is also a freelance science writer.
At ECSJ she will be moderating the session 'Behind the hype'.
Anne van Kessel is a freelance science journalist and president of VWN (the Dutch association for science journalism and communication). At ECSJ she will be hosting the day, together with Krijn Soeteman.
Anne van Kessel is a freelance science journalist and president of VWN (the Dutch association for science journalism and communication). At ECSJ she will be hosting the day, together with Krijn Soeteman.
Maarten Keulemans is science journalist for the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant. He was elected Dutch Journalist of the Year 2021. The jury praised his ‘tireless reporting’ of the corona pandemic. Another topic he follows closely is climate research.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Maarten Keulemans is science journalist for the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant. He was elected Dutch Journalist of the Year 2021. The jury praised his ‘tireless reporting’ of the corona pandemic. Another topic he follows closely is climate research.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Kai Kupferschmidt is a contributing correspondent for Science magazine based in Berlin, Germany. He writes about infectious diseases as well as food science, nutrition, evolution and science policy.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Kai Kupferschmidt is a contributing correspondent for Science magazine based in Berlin, Germany. He writes about infectious diseases as well as food science, nutrition, evolution and science policy.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Heidi Ledford is a senior reporter at Nature, mostly covering biomedicine. She is based in London.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Heidi Ledford is a senior reporter at Nature, mostly covering biomedicine. She is based in London.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Meduza is an independent Russian language news website based in Latvia, founded in 2014. The site has been designated as a foreign agent, and blocked on Russian territory after critical coverage of the Russian-Ukrainian war of February 2022.
A member of the Meduza.io team will show how science journalism can be an aid for war reporting.
Meduza is an independent Russian language news website based in Latvia, founded in 2014. The site has been designated as a foreign agent, and blocked on Russian territory after critical coverage of the Russian-Ukrainian war of February 2022.
A member of the Meduza.io team will show how science journalism can be an aid for war reporting.
Annique Mossou is a trainer and researcher for Bellingcat. Previously she was part of an OSINT-team of the Dutch National Police, where she specialized in online jihadist propaganda. At Bellingcat, she focuses on the world of mis- and disinformation and conspiracy theories.
At ECSJ she will deliver a workshop 2 hour workshop, together with Yoeri van der Weide.
Annique Mossou is a trainer and researcher for Bellingcat. Previously she was part of an OSINT-team of the Dutch National Police, where she specialized in online jihadist propaganda. At Bellingcat, she focuses on the world of mis- and disinformation and conspiracy theories.
At ECSJ she will deliver a workshop 2 hour workshop, together with Yoeri van der Weide.
Elisa Nelissen is PhD researcher at KU Leuven (Belgium) studying the (transcultural) circulation of COVID-19 science news.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Elisa Nelissen is PhD researcher at KU Leuven (Belgium) studying the (transcultural) circulation of COVID-19 science news.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Ochieng' Ogodo is a Kenyan science journalist writing for local and international media houses. He is the English-speaking Africa and the Middle East region winner for the 2008 Reuters-IUCN Media Awards for Excellence in Environmental Reporting.
He is a member of the Executive Board of the World Federation of Science Journalists and the patron of the Kenya Environment and Science Journalists Association (KENSJA). Ogodo is the immediate former SciDev.Net’s Regional Coordinator and Editor for Sub-Saharan Africa English Edition.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Ochieng' Ogodo is a Kenyan science journalist writing for local and international media houses. He is the English-speaking Africa and the Middle East region winner for the 2008 Reuters-IUCN Media Awards for Excellence in Environmental Reporting.
He is a member of the Executive Board of the World Federation of Science Journalists and the patron of the Kenya Environment and Science Journalists Association (KENSJA). Ogodo is the immediate former SciDev.Net’s Regional Coordinator and Editor for Sub-Saharan Africa English Edition.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Jacopo Pasotti is a science and environmental writer from Basel, Switzerland. He is specialized in environmental and social reporting from all over the world. His contributions have been published in National Geographic, GEO, Repubblica, Wired, Vanity Fair, El Pais, Deutsche Welle, Die Zeit, and Science among others.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Jacopo Pasotti is a science and environmental writer from Basel, Switzerland. He is specialized in environmental and social reporting from all over the world. His contributions have been published in National Geographic, GEO, Repubblica, Wired, Vanity Fair, El Pais, Deutsche Welle, Die Zeit, and Science among others.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Sergio Pistoi is a science writer and book author from Italy. He's written for media such as Scientific American, Reuters, the New Scientist and Nature.
Sergio Pistoi is a science writer and book author from Italy. He's written for media such as Scientific American, Reuters, the New Scientist and Nature.
Alexander Pleijter (Leiden University) is an expert in online journalism and fact checking. He is one of the coordinators of the Dutch ‘News checkers’-website www.nieuwscheckers.nl, a project that aims to help the public properly evaluate (online) news and to teach journalism students the skill of fact checking.
At ECSJ he will talk about how to recognise hoaxes and fake news in science reporting.
Alexander Pleijter (Leiden University) is an expert in online journalism and fact checking. He is one of the coordinators of the Dutch ‘News checkers’-website www.nieuwscheckers.nl, a project that aims to help the public properly evaluate (online) news and to teach journalism students the skill of fact checking.
At ECSJ he will talk about how to recognise hoaxes and fake news in science reporting.
Elizabeth Pollitzer is co-founder and Director of Portia Ltd., a London-based nonprofit organization focused on improving gender equality in science and inclusion of gender dimension in research and innovation content. She has served as "architect" of the Gender Summit since its inception in 2011, guiding its focus on gender issues in research and innovation and helping to bring together the scientists, policy makers, gender scholars and others groups in the science system.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Elizabeth Pollitzer is co-founder and Director of Portia Ltd., a London-based nonprofit organization focused on improving gender equality in science and inclusion of gender dimension in research and innovation content. She has served as "architect" of the Gender Summit since its inception in 2011, guiding its focus on gender issues in research and innovation and helping to bring together the scientists, policy makers, gender scholars and others groups in the science system.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Ashani Ranathunga is a civil and environmental engineer and lecturer at the University of Leeds. Her research focuses on utilizing industrial and agricultural waste as anthropogenic soil for soft ground improvement and mine rehabilitation. She has completed her undergraduate studies in Civil and Environmental Engineering at University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka), did her PhD and at Monash Unversity (Australia) and was a lecturer at the University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka).
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Ashani Ranathunga is a civil and environmental engineer and lecturer at the University of Leeds. Her research focuses on utilizing industrial and agricultural waste as anthropogenic soil for soft ground improvement and mine rehabilitation. She has completed her undergraduate studies in Civil and Environmental Engineering at University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka), did her PhD and at Monash Unversity (Australia) and was a lecturer at the University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka).
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Anne Scheel is a meta-science post-doc at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) in Leiden. She is interested in which research and publication practices can improve the reproducibility of the published literature, and how researchers can be encouraged to design more falsifiable and informative studies.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Anne Scheel is a meta-science post-doc at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) in Leiden. She is interested in which research and publication practices can improve the reproducibility of the published literature, and how researchers can be encouraged to design more falsifiable and informative studies.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Ylann Schemm is the Elsevier Foundation’s Director. In 2020, Ylann was appointed Chair of the Executive Council of Research4Life, a UN-publisher partnership to bridge access gaps for researchers and doctors in developing countries. In addition, Ylann is Elsevier’s VP of Corporate Responsibility. She is both American and Dutch and based in Amsterdam.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Ylann Schemm is the Elsevier Foundation’s Director. In 2020, Ylann was appointed Chair of the Executive Council of Research4Life, a UN-publisher partnership to bridge access gaps for researchers and doctors in developing countries. In addition, Ylann is Elsevier’s VP of Corporate Responsibility. She is both American and Dutch and based in Amsterdam.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Research And Journalism: The North/South Dialogue'.
Krijn Soeteman is the former president of VWN, the Dutch association for science journalism and communication, and one of the organizers of ECSJ 2022. Together with Anne van Kessel he will be hosting the day.
Krijn Soeteman is the former president of VWN, the Dutch association for science journalism and communication, and one of the organizers of ECSJ 2022. Together with Anne van Kessel he will be hosting the day.
Ewout Steyerberg is a professor of Clinical Biostatistics and Medical Decision Making at Leiden University Medical Center.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Ewout Steyerberg is a professor of Clinical Biostatistics and Medical Decision Making at Leiden University Medical Center.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Adam Travis is Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) at Logitech. He has worked in Helsinki, Berlin, London and Amsterdam, and in multiple industries / sectors including technology, financial services, express delivery, consulting and energy.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Adam Travis is Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) at Logitech. He has worked in Helsinki, Berlin, London and Amsterdam, and in multiple industries / sectors including technology, financial services, express delivery, consulting and energy.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Inclusion in Science And Science Journalism : The Gender Issue'.
Fabio Turone is Editor in Chief of the Agency Zoe based in Milan (working for several media, covering mostly medicine and health), and Executive Director of the Centre for Ethics in Science and Journalism.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Fabio Turone is Editor in Chief of the Agency Zoe based in Milan (working for several media, covering mostly medicine and health), and Executive Director of the Centre for Ethics in Science and Journalism.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Mending the Reproducibility crisis'.
Bart Verheggen is a climate scientist and teacher at Amsterdam University College. He has been an active participant in the social debate about climate change for years.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Bart Verheggen is a climate scientist and teacher at Amsterdam University College. He has been an active participant in the social debate about climate change for years.
At ECSJ he is one of the speakers during the session 'Climate reporting: it’s not the end of the world?'
Sofie Verkest is a science communication researcher at Ghent University, Belgium. Before stepping into research, she worked as a journalist, copywriter and science communication professional.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Sofie Verkest is a science communication researcher at Ghent University, Belgium. Before stepping into research, she worked as a journalist, copywriter and science communication professional.
At ECSJ she is one of the speakers during the session 'Behind the hype'.
Jop de Vrieze is a freelance science and investigative journalist who followed the corona developments closely.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Jop de Vrieze is a freelance science and investigative journalist who followed the corona developments closely.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Pandemic science reporting – when the professional becomes personal'.
Bruno van Wayenburg is an independent science and technology writer based in Leiden, the Netherlands, focusing on physics, spaceflight, technology, defense and (commissions permitting) obscure linguistics.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Russian Science Journalism: the way forward'.
Bruno van Wayenburg is an independent science and technology writer based in Leiden, the Netherlands, focusing on physics, spaceflight, technology, defense and (commissions permitting) obscure linguistics.
At ECSJ he will be moderating the session 'Russian Science Journalism: the way forward'.
Youri van der Weide is an open source researcher and trainer for Bellingcat. He has worked on a wide variety of topics including human rights abuses in Africa, migration in the Eastern Mediterranean, arms exports by EU countries, and research into new open source research tools and methods.
At ECSJ he will deliver a workshop 2 hour workshop, together with Annique Mossou.
Youri van der Weide is an open source researcher and trainer for Bellingcat. He has worked on a wide variety of topics including human rights abuses in Africa, migration in the Eastern Mediterranean, arms exports by EU countries, and research into new open source research tools and methods.
At ECSJ he will deliver a workshop 2 hour workshop, together with Annique Mossou.
Will be updated when more information becomes available.
Do you enjoy the Sun? It’s hot, it’s bright and it is responsible for beautiful summer sunsets.
On closer look our star has a lot more to offer than sunbathing. At the ECSJ Roel van der Heijden (freelance science journalist) will bring his self-built telescope to investigate our closest star (weather permitting). Maybe we’ll be able to see some sunspots on the surface of the Sun, and Roel will be happy to explain how he made his telescope and how he now uses it for astronomy outreach in his living room planetarium, the ‘Huiskamerplanetarium’ (www.huiskamerplanetarium.nl).
After two days of field trips and getting to know each other, it is time to open the official European Conference of Science Journalism Leiden 2022. Or: #ECSJ2022
Host Desiree Hoving opens the conference, welcoming words by Krijn Soeteman (president EFSJ) and Anne van Kessel (president Dutch association VWN).
Science integrity will always remain a work in progress. While peer-review is a necessary first step in safeguarding the quality and integrity of scientific research, the system has been proven to be far from perfect. Elisabeth Bik has pioneered a ‘forensic’ approach to quality control, by painstakingly checking images, mainly in biomedical publications, for duplications and other unacceptable ways of manipulation. She has identified hundreds of papers with serious flaws, resulting in many retractions.
Her criticism of high-profile researchers like Didier Raoult – who claimed hydroxychloroquine cured covid-19 – has made her the target of lawsuit threats and vicious personal attacks on social media. However, she has no intention of backing down in her quest to improve science integrity.
Glen Smith introduces Starmus, the mission to inspire and educate a new generation of space explorers and astronomers. The next Starmus Festival will be in September, in Armenia.
This session will address the role of the media in discussing the issues related to the so-called “reproducibility crisis” in a constructive way. Panellists will present several critical aspects of this complex issue, and will reflect with the audience on the role that science journalists can have in helping citizens to notice not only the noise of the “falling trees” (the scandals involving lack of integrity and bad methodology) but also the much fainter noise of the growing “forest” of initiatives that are trying to fix the current system of incentives/disincentives that does not value reproducibility studies and instead often leaves room for rushed, hyped, unreliable research.
Speakers
Laura Fortunato (University of Oxford)
Anne Scheel (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, CWTS Leiden)
Ewout Steyenberg (Leiden University Medical Center)
Discussion lead by Fabio Turone (Centre for Ethics in Science and Journalism).
Incorrect reports about (scientific) research are regularly reported in the media. Factchecking organizations, such as the Dutch Nieuwscheckers, are engaged in correcting such erroneous reports. How is it possible that such incorrect reports appear in the media? What are common mistakes made by journalists when they report on research? Using a series of examples Alexander Pleijter will show where things go wrong. And he will demonstrate how fact checkers go about checking reports on research.
Speaker
Alexander Pleijter (Leiden University, Nieuwscheckers)
Hardly a day goes by without reading in the media: ‘Y causes X deaths per year’, where Y can be air pollution, drinking or even noise. Science journalist Arnout Jaspers will show what is fundamentally wrong with this way of quantifying diffuse health effects on a population. There are better alternatives but even major organisations like the WHO ignore this and keep reporting meaningless death counts.
Speaker
Arnout Jaspers (independent science journalist)
Science journalist Olga Dobrovidova will give a short talk about the state of Russian language science journalism. After that, she and several Russian colleagues will further discuss the present situation. Other participants are welcome to join in on this informal event and share their views.
Lunch is served in the restaurant on the second floor. While you’re there, you can head to the terrace and gaze at the sun with street astronomer Roel van der Heijden. You can find him and his self-built telescope on the terrace throughout the day.
The Dutch research landscape.
The Dutch research universities are known for their high quality education and research. During this lunch session you will learn more about the strength of the Dutch universities, the main research areas and the preconditions for successful science in the Netherlands. You can ask Jacob anything about the Dutch research landscape.
Speaker
Jacob Olij (Association of Universities of The Netherlands)
By our partner Universities of the Netherlands.
Journalists play an essential role in bringing new scientific discoveries to the public. It is essential that they have a thorough understanding of how critical research has been designed, conducted and published, asking probing questions like: has sex and gender been integrated in this research? Are there cultural blindspots in this work? Do we have data on research output by gender, race or ethnicity?
As universities, funders and scientific publishers work to create a more inclusive research ecosystem, science journalists must keep pace with key issues around representation, intersectionality, bias and methodology to gain a deeper understanding of them as contributors to quality, the intellectual potential of research, the scientific talent pool and most importantly, societal impact.
This session will explore key issues and perspectives on gender and intersectionality, to equip and challenge science journalists as they interact with and report on the research.
This session is co-organized with Elsevier.
Speakers
Elizabeth Pollitzer (Portia Ltd.)
Adam Travis (Logitech)
Ilaria Cianchetta (Chem Catalysis)
Asha ten Broeke (independent writer and journalist)
Moderator
Rebecca Clear (Elsevier)
The journalism collective Bellingcat, founded by Eliot Higgins in 2014, pioneered online fact checking and open source intelligence (OSINT) methods to document, among others, the downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17, the Skripal Poisoning, and weapons and war crimes in several wars, including the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Instructors Youri van der Weide and Annique Mossou will deliver a 2 hour workshop detailing verification principles (verification and analysis of user generated content, such as photos and videos from social networks), maps and satellite services, and advanced OSINT search techniques.
Attention: bring your laptop. Attendance for actively participating journalists is limited to 30, workshop vouchers will be distributed on site during registration.
Instructors
Youri van der Weide (Bellingcat)
Annique Mossou (Bellingcat)
Mostly, a science reporter zooms in on topics that are socially relevant but can be approached from a safe and comfortable distance. But a pandemic is not distant for any science reporter: we’ve all been in the middle of it. How can a science reporter work in an engaged and neutral way during such a crisis? And how desirable is it to be as neutral as possible when there is so much at stake and the science and its implications have become so value laden and political?
Speakers
Lise Barnéoud (Le Monde)
Heidi Ledford (Nature)
Kai Kupferschmidt (Science)
Sergio Pistoi (Scientific American and Reuters)
Moderator
Jop de Vrieze (independent science journalist)
Science journalism sometimes is criticised because it contains exaggerations about the potential of specific research results. This can happen, for example, when journalistic coverage states or implies that a drug that works in animals will also work in humans before this is tested, or when unsound science is covered without information about its limitations. Journalists, press officers at universities and publishers, and researchers often point to each other as the culprit. In what has been dubbed the ‘cycle of hype’, all parties involved have their own motives for communicating about science that go beyond simply informing the public (e.g. profit or visibility).
In this session, three researchers will discuss their perspectives and study findings about science journalism, highlighting the complexities of the (international) circulation of science news and shedding more light on pitfalls and their solutions. In the second part of the session, there will be a joint discussion between the audience and the speakers, gaining insights from all three parties involved (researchers, journalists, and press officers) to feed future research and promote better science coverage in the media.
Speakers
Elisa Nelissen (KU Leuven)
Sofie Verkest (Gent University)
Anne Dijkstra (University Twente)
Moderator
Annemarie Kerkhoff (Auris, science writer)
Is Global South science under-reported? All too often, in the ‘Global North’, we only hear about crises happening in lower income countries, rather than coverage of the critical research being undertaken by scientists in areas that are most relevant to them. Which fields in particular are under-reported, how, and why? How does the research ecosystem and its biases play a role in this?
In this session we will explore the assumptions of, and challenges faced by, journalists from both the North and South, and possible responses.
Speakers
Ylann Schemm (Elsevier Foundation)
Ashani Ranathunga (University of Leeds)
Ochieng Ogodo (independent science journalist)
Fiona Broom (SciDev.Net)
Moderator
Rebecca Clear (Elsevier)
Meduza is an independent Russian language news website based in Latvia, founded in 2014 by Galina Timchenko and other former employees of the Russian website Lenta.ru, after Timchenko had been fired.
The site has been designated as a foreign agent, and blocked on Russian territory after critical coverage of the Russian-Ukrainian war of February 2022.
A member of the Meduza.io team will show how science journalism can be an aid for war reporting. The team used chronolocation to identify murders of civilians in Bucha by Russian forces.
Speaker
to be announced
When reporting about climate science, should we use ‘global warming’ or ‘climate change’’? Or should we say ‘climate disruption’ or ‘climate breakdown’ instead of ‘climate change’? To what extent should journalists keep their distance from the politicised front line of climate science and its interpretations?
The speakers will debate this issue with each other, and with the audience.
Speakers
Maarten Keulemans (Volkskrant)
Bart Verheggen (Amsterdam University College)
Jacopo Pasotti (independent science and environment writer)
Moderator
Desiree Hoving
During this final session we get together in the large auditorium for a ‘The State of Science Journalism’ speech by Science’s International news editor Martin Enserink.Then, we wrap up this conference day in a fun and (inter)active way led by quiz master Lucas Keijning.
Next, there’s time to rest or do some sightseeing in Leiden. In the evening we hope to see you all for the Grand closure with drinks and bites at Rijksmuseum Boerhaave!
After a full conference day and field trips, it’s time to contemplate together with your science journalist colleagues. The closing drinks & bites will be hosted in the beautiful science museum Boerhaave, which harbours an amazing collection of ancient and modern artefacts that contributed to the advancement of science, in the heart of one of the most beautiful Dutch cities.
The museum is hosting special tours during the evening.
The European Federation for Science Journalism will host two events
21.00 – the award ceremony for the European Science Journalist of the Year Award
21.15 – announcement of the laureates of the EFSJ Climate Grant (made possible by the EFSJ in partnership with BNP Paribas Foundation).
The European Science Journalist of the Year Award will be announced by the EFSJ.
Announcement of the laureates of the EFSJ Climate Grants.
The grant amount is a total of 12.000 euros. Depending on applications received, one to three projects may be awarded grants.
The grant is made possible by the EFSJ in partnership with BNP Paribas Foundation.
For more information, see:
Hardly a day goes by without reading in the media: ‘Y causes X deaths per year’, where Y can be air pollution, drinking or even noise. Science journalist Arnout Jaspers will show what is fundamentally wrong with this way of quantifying diffuse health effects on a population. There are better alternatives but even major organisations like the WHO ignore this and keep reporting meaningless death counts.
Speaker
Arnout Jaspers (independent science journalist)
Journalists play an essential role in bringing new scientific discoveries to the public. It is essential that they have a thorough understanding of how critical research has been designed, conducted and published, asking probing questions like: has sex and gender been integrated in this research? Are there cultural blindspots in this work? Do we have data on research output by gender, race or ethnicity?
As universities, funders and scientific publishers work to create a more inclusive research ecosystem, science journalists must keep pace with key issues around representation, intersectionality, bias and methodology to gain a deeper understanding of them as contributors to quality, the intellectual potential of research, the scientific talent pool and most importantly, societal impact.
This session will explore key issues and perspectives on gender and intersectionality, to equip and challenge science journalists as they interact with and report on the research.
This session is co-organized with Elsevier.
Speakers
Elizabeth Pollitzer (Portia Ltd.)
Adam Travis (Logitech)
Ilaria Cianchetta (Chem Catalysis)
Asha ten Broeke (independent writer and journalist)
Moderator
Rebecca Clear (Elsevier)
Is Global South science under-reported? All too often, in the ‘Global North’, we only hear about crises happening in lower income countries, rather than coverage of the critical research being undertaken by scientists in areas that are most relevant to them. Which fields in particular are under-reported, how, and why? How does the research ecosystem and its biases play a role in this?
In this session we will explore the assumptions of, and challenges faced by, journalists from both the North and South, and possible responses.
Speakers
Ylann Schemm (Elsevier Foundation)
Ashani Ranathunga (University of Leeds)
Ochieng Ogodo (independent science journalist)
Fiona Broom (SciDev.Net)
Moderator
Rebecca Clear (Elsevier)
This session will address the role of the media in discussing the issues related to the so-called “reproducibility crisis” in a constructive way. Panellists will present several critical aspects of this complex issue, and will reflect with the audience on the role that science journalists can have in helping citizens to notice not only the noise of the “falling trees” (the scandals involving lack of integrity and bad methodology) but also the much fainter noise of the growing “forest” of initiatives that are trying to fix the current system of incentives/disincentives that does not value reproducibility studies and instead often leaves room for rushed, hyped, unreliable research.
Speakers
Laura Fortunato (University of Oxford)
Anne Scheel (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, CWTS Leiden)
Ewout Steyenberg (Leiden University Medical Center)
Discussion lead by Fabio Turone (Centre for Ethics in Science and Journalism).
The journalism collective Bellingcat, founded by Eliot Higgins in 2014, pioneered online fact checking and open source intelligence (OSINT) methods to document, among others, the downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17, the Skripal Poisoning, and weapons and war crimes in several wars, including the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Instructors Youri van der Weide and Annique Mossou will deliver a 2 hour workshop detailing verification principles (verification and analysis of user generated content, such as photos and videos from social networks), maps and satellite services, and advanced OSINT search techniques.
Attention: bring your laptop. Attendance for actively participating journalists is limited to 30, workshop vouchers will be distributed on site during registration.
Instructors
Youri van der Weide (Bellingcat)
Annique Mossou (Bellingcat)
Science journalist Olga Dobrovidova will give a short talk about the state of Russian language science journalism. After that, she and several Russian colleagues will further discuss the present situation. Other participants are welcome to join in on this informal event and share their views.
Mostly, a science reporter zooms in on topics that are socially relevant but can be approached from a safe and comfortable distance. But a pandemic is not distant for any science reporter: we’ve all been in the middle of it. How can a science reporter work in an engaged and neutral way during such a crisis? And how desirable is it to be as neutral as possible when there is so much at stake and the science and its implications have become so value laden and political?
Speakers
Lise Barnéoud (Le Monde)
Heidi Ledford (Nature)
Kai Kupferschmidt (Science)
Sergio Pistoi (Scientific American and Reuters)
Moderator
Jop de Vrieze (independent science journalist)
When reporting about climate science, should we use ‘global warming’ or ‘climate change’’? Or should we say ‘climate disruption’ or ‘climate breakdown’ instead of ‘climate change’? To what extent should journalists keep their distance from the politicised front line of climate science and its interpretations?
The speakers will debate this issue with each other, and with the audience.
Speakers
Maarten Keulemans (Volkskrant)
Bart Verheggen (Amsterdam University College)
Jacopo Pasotti (independent science and environment writer)
Moderator
Desiree Hoving
Do you enjoy the Sun? It’s hot, it’s bright and it is responsible for beautiful summer sunsets.
On closer look our star has a lot more to offer than sunbathing. At the ECSJ Roel van der Heijden (freelance science journalist) will bring his self-built telescope to investigate our closest star (weather permitting). Maybe we’ll be able to see some sunspots on the surface of the Sun, and Roel will be happy to explain how he made his telescope and how he now uses it for astronomy outreach in his living room planetarium, the ‘Huiskamerplanetarium’ (www.huiskamerplanetarium.nl).
After two days of field trips and getting to know each other, it is time to open the official European Conference of Science Journalism Leiden 2022. Or: #ECSJ2022
Host Desiree Hoving opens the conference, welcoming words by Krijn Soeteman (president EFSJ) and Anne van Kessel (president Dutch association VWN).
Science integrity will always remain a work in progress. While peer-review is a necessary first step in safeguarding the quality and integrity of scientific research, the system has been proven to be far from perfect. Elisabeth Bik has pioneered a ‘forensic’ approach to quality control, by painstakingly checking images, mainly in biomedical publications, for duplications and other unacceptable ways of manipulation. She has identified hundreds of papers with serious flaws, resulting in many retractions.
Her criticism of high-profile researchers like Didier Raoult – who claimed hydroxychloroquine cured covid-19 – has made her the target of lawsuit threats and vicious personal attacks on social media. However, she has no intention of backing down in her quest to improve science integrity.
Glen Smith introduces Starmus, the mission to inspire and educate a new generation of space explorers and astronomers. The next Starmus Festival will be in September, in Armenia.
Incorrect reports about (scientific) research are regularly reported in the media. Factchecking organizations, such as the Dutch Nieuwscheckers, are engaged in correcting such erroneous reports. How is it possible that such incorrect reports appear in the media? What are common mistakes made by journalists when they report on research? Using a series of examples Alexander Pleijter will show where things go wrong. And he will demonstrate how fact checkers go about checking reports on research.
Speaker
Alexander Pleijter (Leiden University, Nieuwscheckers)
The Dutch research landscape.
The Dutch research universities are known for their high quality education and research. During this lunch session you will learn more about the strength of the Dutch universities, the main research areas and the preconditions for successful science in the Netherlands. You can ask Jacob anything about the Dutch research landscape.
Speaker
Jacob Olij (Association of Universities of The Netherlands)
By our partner Universities of the Netherlands.
Science journalism sometimes is criticised because it contains exaggerations about the potential of specific research results. This can happen, for example, when journalistic coverage states or implies that a drug that works in animals will also work in humans before this is tested, or when unsound science is covered without information about its limitations. Journalists, press officers at universities and publishers, and researchers often point to each other as the culprit. In what has been dubbed the ‘cycle of hype’, all parties involved have their own motives for communicating about science that go beyond simply informing the public (e.g. profit or visibility).
In this session, three researchers will discuss their perspectives and study findings about science journalism, highlighting the complexities of the (international) circulation of science news and shedding more light on pitfalls and their solutions. In the second part of the session, there will be a joint discussion between the audience and the speakers, gaining insights from all three parties involved (researchers, journalists, and press officers) to feed future research and promote better science coverage in the media.
Speakers
Elisa Nelissen (KU Leuven)
Sofie Verkest (Gent University)
Anne Dijkstra (University Twente)
Moderator
Annemarie Kerkhoff (Auris, science writer)
Meduza is an independent Russian language news website based in Latvia, founded in 2014 by Galina Timchenko and other former employees of the Russian website Lenta.ru, after Timchenko had been fired.
The site has been designated as a foreign agent, and blocked on Russian territory after critical coverage of the Russian-Ukrainian war of February 2022.
A member of the Meduza.io team will show how science journalism can be an aid for war reporting. The team used chronolocation to identify murders of civilians in Bucha by Russian forces.
Speaker
to be announced
During this final session we get together in the large auditorium for a ‘The State of Science Journalism’ speech by Science’s International news editor Martin Enserink.Then, we wrap up this conference day in a fun and (inter)active way led by quiz master Lucas Keijning.
Next, there’s time to rest or do some sightseeing in Leiden. In the evening we hope to see you all for the Grand closure with drinks and bites at Rijksmuseum Boerhaave!
After a full conference day and field trips, it’s time to contemplate together with your science journalist colleagues. The closing drinks & bites will be hosted in the beautiful science museum Boerhaave, which harbours an amazing collection of ancient and modern artefacts that contributed to the advancement of science, in the heart of one of the most beautiful Dutch cities.
The museum is hosting special tours during the evening.
The European Federation for Science Journalism will host two events
21.00 – the award ceremony for the European Science Journalist of the Year Award
21.15 – announcement of the laureates of the EFSJ Climate Grant (made possible by the EFSJ in partnership with BNP Paribas Foundation).
The European Science Journalist of the Year Award will be announced by the EFSJ.
Announcement of the laureates of the EFSJ Climate Grants.
The grant amount is a total of 12.000 euros. Depending on applications received, one to three projects may be awarded grants.
The grant is made possible by the EFSJ in partnership with BNP Paribas Foundation.
For more information, see:
