Speaker
Description
Outreach programs are typically designed to benefit public audiences, but they can also be powerful training grounds for researchers themselves. At the ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics and OzGrav in Australia, we intentionally use outreach and education programs as opportunities for early career researchers to develop the “soft skills” that are critical for modern scientific careers.
This talk will share how we integrate communication, mentoring, leadership, and collaboration training into programs including the OzGrav Outreach Ambassadors initiative, the Regional Partner Schools program, HERA student balloon research projects, and dedicated professional development sessions at collaboration meetings. These experiences allow researchers to practice communicating complex ideas to diverse audiences, lead hands-on activities, mentor students, and explore career pathways in science communication and outreach.
By embedding researcher development within authentic outreach experiences, we have found that these programs strengthen both the quality of public engagement and the confidence and capability of the researchers involved. This presentation will highlight practical approaches, successes, challenges, and lessons learned that may be transferable to outreach programs across the international particle physics community.