To be on conferences is  part of a scientist’s  job. Because communication is getting more and more important for scientists and scientific institutions, some workshops and conferences especially about science communication have been established in the last years, too. This week in Porto (Portugal) the 1st International Marine Science Communication Conference (IMSCC) is held – as the name says especially for communication in marine sciences.

This is exactly our job and Oceanblogs is, among others, our contribution to marine science communication. So yesterday we flew to Porto to present the Kiel Marine Sciences blogging platform and to be inspired by other ideas, concepts and projects. About 100 scientists, communicators and journalists from 16 countries participate in the conference. We’ll give our presentation tomorrow and of course we’ll write an detailed post about the IMSCC2014 after its end. Now only very briefly: The first day has been quite interesting: We heard a passionate  opening talk from Nancy Baron about “Power Tools for Science Communicators”, Jan-Stefan Fritz  from the German Marine Research Consortium KDM  explained the relations between sciences and (European) policy, we heard about projects  involving pupils and artists in marine sciences or about the value of  infographics.

The venue is also quite interesting. As Henry the Navigator was born in Porto the old town can be seen as a symbol for exploration and human curiosity in general. Of course the explorations Henry initiated not only led  to new knowledge but also to exploitation and destruction. So they can be seen as a warning for modern day explorers and scientists, too.

And of course, the city of Porto itself is definitely a sight to see, as we could see yesterday afternoon on a walk through narrow alleys and along the banks of the river Douro.
For further news from IMSCC follow #imscc2014 on twitter or just wait for our next post.

Adeus,
Christian & Jan