
Online Science-Media Training Session
29th of November 2021
EVOKE and EuroScitizen (WG4) is organizing a set of online Science-Media training sessions directed at journalists, science communicators and scientists. By joining these groups we aim to improve the quality of the communication and understanding between scientists and media, thus contributing to the increase of the quality of science communication.
This upcoming training session will offer you hand-on practice on combining visual and written elements in science communication and will be conducted by Gil Costa and Filipa Vala, two experienced trainers with scientific and media background.
Topics
- Basic principles of design and illustration for science communication
- Basic principles of scientific writing and narrative
- Combining visual and written elements for storytelling in sci comm
- Analysis of infographics
- Content production for infographics
The trainers

Gil Costa – is a Scientific Designer and Illustrator with a background in Biology and a PhD in Neurosciences (University of Coimbra, 2015). He works to bridge the worlds of Science, Design and Arts, aiming at creating exciting new ways of telling scientific stories. He understands Science very accurately and has been exploring tools in multiple realms of visualization – Illustration, Graphic Design, Motion Design, and Data Visualization – to improve communication of Science to the general public and among scientific peers. Currently based between Lisbon and Brussels, Gil works with scientists and scientific institutions around the world, creating figures and journal covers, brochures and reports, exhibitions and videos, brands and identities.
Filipa Vala – is a science communicator with a PhD in Evolution and Ecology (University of Amsterdam, 2001), with over 10 years research experience. She was a researcher before working fulltime in science communication. Around 2006, she made a career move to science communication, motivated by a 3-month training period at the daily newspaper, Público. Since then, she worked in television and documentary, exhibitions and education programs, edited, authored and co-authored books, including, exhibition catalogues, a popularization of science book, and a species field-guide on a wide range of scientific topics. Filipa has written for several science communication exhibitions, including the national audience-record breaking The Evolution of Darwin (Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, 2009).
(https://www.linkedin.com/in/filipa-vala-scicom-2021/)
Program
29th of November 2021
9h50 Welcome
10h-10h30 Presentation and motivation
10h30-11h30 Basic principles of design and illustration for science communication
11h30-12h30 Basic principles of scientific writing and narrative
12h30-13h Combining visual and written elements for storytelling in sci comm
13h-13h45 Lunch break
13h45-15h: Analysis of existing infographics (with general discussion)
15h-17h Practical exercise: Content production for infographics on an evolution topic (in groups)
17h-18h Presentation by each group and general discussion
Note: the hours indicated for CET (please adjust to your time zone)
Funding
The training school will be held online and it will be free of charge for the trainees.
As this will be a training school involving practical activities, it is limited to 20 participants.
Application
Please register here (until the 14th of November)
The selection of participants will follow the order the applications are received, however we will try to balance gender, career stage, and country of the participants. You will be informed if your application was selected by the 22nd of November.
Who can apply?
Training is open to all stages of science, science communication and journalism careers.
Note that the trainees must be part of the EVOKE community. The EvoKE community brings together different stakeholders (researchers, educators, science communicators, policy makers) interested in and working on European wide projects to promote the public understanding of evolution.
Joining EVOKE is free of charge and simple. To know more about EVOKE and join this network: https://evokeproject.org/what-is-the-evoke-project/
Deadline for applications
Until the 14th of November
Join us! This is a great opportunity to meet an international team of inspiring people with an open mind and the one common goal. We want to communicate better information and stories in a way that will help society to better understand facts, data and science!
Have you missed this course? Don’t worry! You can see the training materials here!