Science Stories Africa is a public engagement platform that seeks to improve public appreciation of science in Africa through the power of storytelling .
It works with scientists who are on the verge of releasing their research products or whose products are already on the market.
After a three-to-five-day intensive training session on storytelling and public speaking, the scientists are offered an opportunity to share their stories before a live audience in a theater, coupled with live performances from talented artists.
The origin of Science Stories Africa
“As a science communicator, I struggled with the question of behavioral change. Why is it that there are many life-changing innovations in Africa developed by Africans, but adoption and appreciation is low? This is especially true in the GMO conversation, where people say they don’t want GMOs, but when you explain the concept to them, they realize they’d have no problem with genetic engineering and its products. It then dawned on me that we need more awareness, but in a way that makes science both fun and accessible, which is storytelling.” — Patricia Nanteza, Associate Director, Science Stories Africa
Nanteza is a 2015 Alliance for Science Global Leadership Fellow and a member of the Fellowship’s inaugural cohort. She is also the training lead for the Alliance for Science, based in Nairobi, Kenya. She previously worked as a science writer for the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in its Ibadan, Nigeria, office. Prior to joining IITA, she was a communication specialist with Uganda’s banana research program. Nanteza is an ardent advocate of Africa speaking for herself and choosing technologies appropriate to the continent’s present challenges.
