Let's Talk About Water: Film Screenings as an Entrée to Water Science
Abstract
"Let's Talk about Water" is a film symposium designed to bring together experts and the public to talk about the complex water issues facing society. The format of the event is quite simple: a panel of experts and the audience view a water documentary (such as "FLOW", "Liquid Assets", or "Gasland") together and there is an extended moderated discussion period following the film between the panel and the audience. Properly handled, this simple format can be very effective. A film creates a context of subject and language for the discussion--it gets the audience and the panel on the same page. The moderators must actively manage the discussion, both challenging the panelists with follow up questions, asking questions to simplify the language the expert is using, and passing a question among panelists to bring out different points of view. The panelists are provided with the film in advance to view and, most importantly, meet the day before the event to discuss the film. This makes for a much more convivial discussion at the event. We have found that these discussions can easily be sustained for 90 to 120 minutes with active audience participation. This format has been applied at college campuses with a target audience of lower-level undergraduates. Student clubs are engaged to help with publicity before the event and to assist with registration and ushering during the event. Appropriate classes offer extra credit for student attendance to ensure a strong turnout. A Hollywood film ("Chinatown" in southern California, "A Civil Action" in Boston) is shown on campus during the week preceding the event to help advertise the event. The event itself is typically held on a Saturday with a morning screening of the film. The audience is provided with index cards and pencils to write down questions they have about the film. A lunch is provided during which the questions are organized and used to initiate different discussion themes. The discussion begins with points raised by the movie (are these issues real? Do they apply here? What are the scientific, engineering, and policy solutions to these problems?) and then segues into a discussion about career opportunities in the water sector. Our past events at UC Irvine and at UMass Boston have been successful in attracting large audiences and have been viewed positively by attendees.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2011
- Bibcode:
- 2011AGUFMED33B0779H
- Keywords:
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- 0400 BIOGEOSCIENCES;
- 0815 EDUCATION / Informal education;
- 1800 HYDROLOGY