HR: 09:45h
AN: C41A-04    [Abstracts]
TI: Engaging, Educating the Public Before, During, and Beyond IPY 2007-2008
AU: * Goldman, J M
EM: Jana.Goldman@noaa.gov
AF: NOAA Office of Public, Constituent, and Intergovernmental Affairs, 14th and Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C 20230 United States
AU: West, P T
EM: pwest@nsf.gov
AF: NSF Office of Legislative and Public Affairs, Suite 1245 4201 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Va 22230 United States
AB: The International Polar Year 2007-2008 offers an exceptional opportunity to educate and excite the public about the Polar Regions. This paper explores ways of reaching a variety of audiences and proposes the creation of a national or international outreach working group to plan and coordinate activities leading up to and beyond IPY 2007-2008. Through a variety of media that did not even exist during the first IPY in 1957, including Web sites and live interactive television broadcasts, the public can become virtual members of the scientific expeditions that will increase our knowledge of the regions. Creating common messages and themes among agencies and institutions, developing communication and education plans, and working together will help ensure that the public understand how IPY projects affect their everyday lives. Advance planning is crucial to making this sort of outreach work and must begin immediately in order to effectively and seamlessly become part of a logistics stream that is developed years ahead of field deployments.
DE: 0815 Informal education
DE: 6605 Education
SC: Cryosphere [C]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly