(Not) lost in translation: Engaging the public with climate science

As scientists, we like to think that our work helps foster better understanding of our world. Many of us hope that the knowledge we are building will be used by the (mostly non-scientist) public and government leaders to make better decisions about how individuals and society respond to challenges like climate change. In reality, most people don’t read scientific journal articles in their spare time and only skim the science section of the newspaper (if they read it at all). So what’s a scientist to do if they want to engage people with their topic? Become a translator!