The AAAS Center for Public Engagement with Science and Technology manages the AAAS Alan I. Leshner Leadership Institute for Public Engagement with Science.
Each year, AAAS Leshner Fellows are selected from disciplines at the nexus of an important science-society issue. They convene for a week of intensive public engagement and science communication training and public engagement plan development. In addition to their individual plan, they are encouraged to consider collaborative projects with one or more other fellows to pursue over the course of the year.
AAAS Leshner Fellows return to their institutions with a renewed commitment to develop and implement public engagement activities, train and mentor other scientists in their communities, and promote public engagement within their institutions. Visit About the Leshner Leadership Institute for more information about the program, and see the Faces of the Fellowship document for highlights of past fellows' public engagement activities.
Over the past five years, Leshner Fellows have collectively engaged tens of thousands of people through their engagement activities. The fellows have also built public engagement capacity within their scientific institutions, disciplines, networks, and communities, including through sharing what they have learned in their work as AAAS Leshner Fellows with hundreds of their students and colleagues. AAAS recently completed an evaluation of the first five years of the program: see the executive summary and full report here.
AAAS is not currently soliciting applications for a new cohort. If you are interested in updates about this work, the future of the AAAS Leshner Leadership Institute, and announcements about applications for new cohorts of AAAS Leshner Fellows, add your name to our mailing list. AAAS is currently raising funds for the next five years. If you are interested in contributing, please make a gift online or contact the Development Office by email.
Resources
- Frontiers in Communication Article Featuring the Leshner Leadership Institute (January 2022)
- Executive Summary of Leshner Leadership Institute Retrospective Evaluation (December 2021)
- Lasting Impacts of the Leshner Leadership Institute: Retrospective Evaluation Report (December 2021)
- Faces of the Fellowship: Highlights from the First Five Years (2016-2020)
- Building Institutional Capacity for Public Engagement: Examples from the AAAS Leshner Leadership Institute (December 2018)
