Ocean Outreach in Australia: How a National Research Facility is Engaging with Community to Improve Scientific Literacy

Marine systems across the globe are experiencing myriad pressures with consequences for their health, management and industries communities that depend on them. Critical to improved of our oceans coasts is effective education communication ultimately leads societal value world’s oceans. In Australia, national scientific research agency, CSIRO, operates critical infrastructure such as National Facility (MNF), which also plays an important role in marine education, training communication. The MNF Outreach Program seeks strategically engage community science, identifying audience segments developing programs, activities content meet specific information needs. program structured around three segments: Purpose Seekers, Nurturers Lifelong Learners. With both at-sea shore-based programs including Indigenous Time at Sea Scholarship, CAPSTAN sea-training, Educator Board, Floating Classroom, live ship-to-shore crosses media social programming, delivers meaningful engagement through experiential learning opportunities, rather than simply addressing knowledge deficits. As issues varied complex, approaches must be equally multifaceted, a successful outreach will have spectrum varying resource intensity (such cost, time appropriately skilled personnel) matched clear target segments. increasing recognition importance science informing literacy policy, publicly funded facilities essential play by shifting from traditional research-only roles provide targeted outreach.