Strategies and attributes of scientists for public engagement with climate change

Public engagement by scientists has become imperative across the science-policy interface. Today, there are increasing calls for scientists to engage communities and policymakers as a pathway to incorporate social pluralism, many ways of knowing, and producing usable knowledge. Yet, there is a limited understanding of the strategies and attributes that can help scientists interact with other distinct publics in two-way conversations on a pressing issue such as climate change. Here, we examined via 28 semi-structured qualitative interviews, strategies and personal attributes of scientists and their practices that offer a pathway to transforming public engagement under climate change. We found that scientists use seven strategies and six personal attributes to engage distinct publics in two-way dialog and active and deep discussions on climate change. These strategies require scientists to foster connection with others, engage the public from the beginning, create safe spaces for dialogue, provide summaries for discussions, go beyond arms-length approaches, understand the context, and approach engagement as a partnership . The strategies also draw on attributes related to being open-minded and resilient, knowing your competencies and audiences, practicing reflexivity, and respecting alternative viewpoints . These findings and insights have implications for how scientists engage distinct publics in two-way dialogue by offering an evidence base to support practice change. They form a first step in informing the ability of scientists to navigate differences across settings and with questions of power and politics.