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Civic Science Media Lab

Version 3
An archive of training initiatives in science communication.

TISPE-Rxiv

Training Initiatives for Scientists in Public Engagement

Launched in 2023 with support from the Lasker Foundation and Research!America.

Latest functionality update ยท Submit a training for review.
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Geography of the archive

Color shows the number of matching archived initiatives in each state or country. Counts describe archive coverage, not population-adjusted activity or the completeness of the ecosystem. Select a region to filter.

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Host organization for each initiative

Training domain

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Scientific field

Initiativesโ€”
Organizationsโ€”

Location

Length of training

Types of outcomes posted online

Target participants

Training type vs. target participants

Flow width represents matching initiatives. Select a flow to filter both categories.

Initiative type

Delivery

Academic institutions mapped

Distinct named university hosts in the matching records, relative to all named university hosts in this archive.

Training areas

Blue = recorded coverage; gray = not coded as covered; pale gray = unknown. Percentages use all matching initiatives. An initiative can cover several areas. These indicators describe reviewed public materials, not a direct assessment of teaching quality.

Taxonomy informed by:

See the report for the coding approach.

Ongoing Coverage

Search our reporting on public engagement training.

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Behind the archive

A developing ecosystem, documented over time.

About the archive

Mapping began in late 2022 in partnership with the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation and Research!America. The inaugural report, published in December 2023, introduced TISPE as a window into public engagement training for scientists.

TISPE documents a developing ecosystem: the organizations providing training, the skills and approaches they emphasize, and the communities they seek to reach. Historical and more recent entries offer a record of the field as it develops, supporting exploration, research, connections, and collaboration.

  1. 2022Mapping begins
  2. 2023Inaugural report published
  3. OngoingReviewing and adding records

Foreword

โ€œA critical way forward is to train scientists in the skills needed for effective public engagement.โ€

Research!America and the Lasker Foundation

Read the foreword excerpt

This project grew out of a long-standing belief shared by the Lasker Foundation and Research!America that the science community must take steps to modernize its relationship with the public and that a critical way forward is to train scientists in the skills needed for effective public engagement.

Embarking on the landscape project in late 2022, we were further motivated by surveys showing a decline in the publicโ€™s trust in scientists. We were aware of various training initiatives, but how common were these opportunities? What content was being offered, where was it taking place, and who was participating?

Getting our collective arms around the current state of training in public engagement is a necessary step in building greater support for civic science across academia. This includes gaining insights into the roles played by key partners in philanthropy, government, and scientific societies.

Read the full foreword

About the data

TISPE documents training initiatives identified through publicly available information, including initiative websites, publications, directories, and conversations with stakeholders. Records describe the organizations, formats, participants, and training content documented during review.

The archive includes initiatives whether active or inactive when we discover them. It is a living record: we continue to review additional information, add initiatives, refine existing entries, and update the dashboard.

The inaugural report explains how the initial dataset was gathered and provides context for the categories used in the archive.

Read the report to learn more

Current limitations

The archive is not a complete inventory. Many training initiatives are not yet represented, and we hope to include more as we identify and review them. Counts and patterns reflect the records collected so far. Many of the documented initiatives are based at universities, reflecting the initial focus on university-based training when the foundational dataset was created.

Categorizations are best approximations based on the information available online, which can change over time.

The database (as of Oct 2026) is currently maintained without external funding, so reviews and updates can take time. We welcome partners interested in helping sustain and expand this work. To explore a partnership, get in touch.

Dashboard updates

  1. You can now submit a training for review.

  2. Recent additions now shows the latest 10 entries.

  3. Filter initiatives by the year they were added.

  4. The archive moved from Google Looker to CSML.

  5. The archive launched, hosted with Google Looker.

In the works:

Compare two programs side by side.

Cite this archive

Use the inaugural report when citing the initial collection methods.

Initiative

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