Goals of our research

Science is an important resource of modern societies: Scientists diagnose societal problems such as the spread of viruses, malnutrition or climate change, and they develop ways to address them, such as vaccines, breeding technologies or CO2-free mobility. However, societies can only make ideal use of this resource if scientific findings are presented and discussed factually and accurately in the political and public discourse.

However, there are serious challenges in communicating scientific knowledge in politics and society. The goal of research at ZAK is to identify problems of public engagement with science and to examine ways of overcoming them. Our research aims to contribute to the objectification of polarized and politicized public disputes about the environment, technology, and science. On the one hand, our research should address practical problems of the KIT's science communication. On the other hand, our research results should initiate social and KIT-internal debates on the handling of scientific knowledge in public. Students will also be involved in our research within the framework of project seminars.