European Science Communication Institute

⏳ Our online media speed-dating on Restoring Europe’s soils and wetlands is taking place next week.

🗓️ 11 March 2026 | 🕒 15:00–16:00 CET
Meet researchers from NBS4DROUGHT, @wethorizons.eu, iCOSHELLS and URSOILL.

📝 Register now: forms.office.com/pages/respon...

Recycling Magnets and Rare Earth Elements Where do old magnets go? 🤔 Meet Magnus and discover the exciting science behind #magnet #recycling! The EU-funded HARMONY project is developing the best me...

Complex EU research, clearly explained 🎥
For the HARMONY project, ESCI produced an animation video that translates technical innovation into an accessible story for broad audiences. HARMONY develops technologies to recycle rare earth magnets. ♻️

Happy to welcome Lena Sterzik to our team in Oldenburg 🙌 

Our new scicomm intern brings: 
🌱 a Master’s focus on Environmental Psychology & Sustainability 
📚 a love for making science relatable 
☕ a strong commitment to being “freshly caffeinated” 

Great to have you on board, Lena!

What if volcanic ash could help the environment? 🌋🌱

New research suggests ash from Mount Etna can boost soil health and support plant growth, turning a volcanic byproduct into something useful. A great example of science finding solutions in unexpected places: https://bit.ly/RCSVolcanoAsh

We’ll be at Successful R & I in Europe 2026 tomorrow and Thursday.

If you’re attending and looking for a communication and dissemination partner for your Horizon Europe project, whether you have a project idea, a proposal in preparation or a consortium taking shape, let’s connect!

Join our online media speed-dating session to connect journalists with soil and wetlands researchers from the projects NBS4DROUGHT, @wethorizons.eu, iCOSHELLS, URSOILL.

🌍 Restoring Europe’s soils and wetlands
🗓️ 11 March 2026
🕒 15:00–16:00 CET
📝 Register now: forms.office.com/pages/respon...

On #WomenInSTEMDay, we celebrate women herders 🌿

Their ecological knowledge sustains species-rich grasslands and biodiversity, even if it’s rarely recognised as STEM.

At BIOTraCes, we work with women herders as equal knowledge holders.
#WomenInScience #Biodiversity #IDWGS2026

We’ll be at Successful R&I in Europe 2026 on 19–20 Feb 👋

If you’re attending and looking for an experienced communication & dissemination partner for Horizon Europe, let’s talk.

ESCI has supported 50+ EU-funded projects since 2017.

#HorizonEurope #EUProjects #ScienceCommunication

Think society is in decline? Research gives us some reasons to be cheerful If we look at people’s values - abstract ideals that guide our behaviour - there are reasons to be positive about society.

Think society is in moral decline? The data says otherwise.

Studies show that people across the world still value honesty, loyalty and helpfulness, and often act on those values.

A hopeful look at who we really are 👇

@uk.theconversation.com

theconversation.com/think-societ...

💻 Web-Devs aufgepasst! Wir suchen Verstärkung in Oldenburg (60-100%) für Webprojekte im wissenschaftlichen Kontext.

✅ Fullstack: PHP, JS, CSS & HTML 
✅ Erfahrung mit CMS & Datenbanken 
✅ Auge für Responsive Design & SEO

Bewirb dich bis 15.03.26,
Details auf unserer Website.

AI is designing proteins that could help treat cancer A team used generative AI to enhance T cells’ ability to fight melanoma. The immunotherapy approach needs more testing before use in cancer patients.

AI is designing cancer-fighting proteins 🧬

Scientists built a “GPS” for cancer-fighting immune cells using generative AI. It’s early days, but it could unlock faster, more targeted cancer therapies.

@sciencenews.bsky.social

www.sciencenews.org/article/gene...

Looking for partners for your next Horizon Europe project?

ESCI will take part in Successful R&I in Europe 2026 (19–20 Feb).

With experience from 50+ EU-funded projects, we support consortia with communication.

Register by 6 Feb 👉https://horizont.zenit.de/events/successful-r-i-in-europe-2026/

Scientists Re-Create the Microbial Dance That Sparked Complex Life | Quanta Magazine Evolution was fueled by endosymbiosis, cellular alliances in which one microbe makes a permanent home inside another. For the first time, biologists made it happen in the lab.

Complex life began with one cell living inside another.

Now, for the first time, scientists have recreated this moment in the lab, coaxing one microbe to make a home inside another.

@quantamagazine.bsky.social

www.quantamagazine.org/scientists-r...

These scientific discoveries brought us joy in 2025 Amidst a tough year for science, glimmers of joy burst through in revelations from the silly to the sublime.

Axolotls, butt-breathing, and a 3D-printed elephant in a living cell 🐘

Science brings progress, but also joy and giggles. Here’s a roundup of discoveries from 2025 that made us smile.

@sciencenews.bsky.social

www.sciencenews.org/article/scie...

AI is increasingly shaping how research is produced and science communication has to adapt.

At #WissKon25 in Karlsruhe, Kristine Jung and Jürgen Kleinig exchanged with the SciComm community and explored current trends, with a strong focus on AI and its impact on research and academic writing.

How Dad’s Fitness May Be Packaged and Passed Down in Sperm RNA | Quanta Magazine Research into how a father’s choices — such as diet, exercise, stress, nicotine use — may transfer traits to his children has become impossible to ignore.

What if your dad’s workouts changed your metabolism? 🧬

New research suggests that diet, exercise and mental stress can leave molecular traces in sperm, shaping how the next generation develops.

@quantamagazine.bsky.social

www.quantamagazine.org/how-dads-fit...

Science’s 2025 Breakthrough of the Year: The unstoppable rise of renewable energy Clean energy infrastructure is being deployed with unmatched scale and speed—and China is leading the way

Goodbye coal, hello renewables ⚡

Science has named the global surge in renewable energy its 2025 Breakthrough of the Year.

Renewables have overtaken coal, with solar and wind meeting rising power demand.

@science.org

www.science.org/content/arti...

Our take on:
What is science communication 🧪 🗣️

There are so many ways to communicate science, which is what makes this field so creative and exciting. What activities or elements are part of science communication for you?

#ScienceCommunication #SciComm

Science is best communicated through identity and culture: How researchers are ensuring STEM serves their communities Lived experiences shape how science is conducted. This matters because who gets to speak for science steers which problems are prioritized, how evidence is translated into practice and who ultimately ...

Science communication isn’t just facts — inclusive, identity-centered approaches are reshaping how researchers connect with communities and build trust. Read how diverse voices enrich outreach👇
phys.org/news/2026-01...

5️⃣
Diversity and responsible prompting

4️⃣
Using performance and play to engage audiences emotionally

3️⃣
Creative formats can bring science into everyday spaces

2️⃣
Relatable voices increase relevance in impact

1️⃣
Meaningful #ScienceCommunication still requires solid research, thoughtful formats and time to build trust with audiences as Katharina Zweig explained in her keynote.

Faster doesn’t always mean better.

At this year’s Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation by @w-i-d.de, AI was the thread running through every session, prompting the community to reflect on quality, creativity, and trust in #ScienceCommunication. 

Here are our 5 key take-aways🧵👇

In need of open tools and databases to better understand climate change, demography, health, digital transformation and other issues? The Joint Research Centre provides a wide range of them! 👇

Country Overshoot Day 2026 calendar The Country Overshoot Day 2026 calendar shows the dates by which humanity would have used up everything Earth can renew for that year, if all people consumed at the level of that country.

🌍 How fast do countries use up Earth’s resources?

New Country Overshoot Days show the date when the planet’s yearly budget would be exhausted if everyone lived like people in that country.

A stark snapshot of global inequality in resource use.
overshoot.footprintnetwork.org/newsroom/cou...

Our annual ESCI Christmas party brought markets, games, food, and some truly ugly Christmas ornaments 🎄

Vote below: which one wins ugliest decoration?

Happy holidays from all of us at ESCI ✨

Frontiers | Science communication on TikTok: toward transformative and post-normal science Science communication on social media is becoming increasingly important in order to promote an open dialog between science and the public. This raises the q...

As science increasingly enters public discourse, researchers are confronted with communication contexts shaped by uncertainty, value conflicts, and strong societal expectations.

Behind the scenes: The making of 2025's Pictures of the Year From setting up camera traps to piloting high-flying drones, National Geographic photographers go to great lengths to get the perfect shot.

A behind-the-scenes glimpse into 2025 National Geographic's Pictures of the Year: a reminder of how powerful visual storytelling can be in communicating science and the world around us.