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What motivated you to engage the public with your work?

I have always been interested in how science is portrayed and how universities engage with the wider public, particularly when I started my PhD and had to explain the context, importance and potential impact of my research to non-technical audiences. Alongside the strategic focus on the STEM subjects, public engagement is a vital strand in highlighting and reinforcing the importance of scientific research and the role of HEIs to the wider public and the modern world. This interaction strengthens the (previously poor) links between academic and non?academic communities. From a personal perspective, the impact of research is increasingly becoming an important metric of how it is judged, so it made sense to use public engagement as a way of increasing the awareness of my research, develop new skills and relationships and also develop a fresh perspective on my work.

Describe the public engagement activity you have done.

My public engagement activities have primarily been under two main schemes: as a STEM Ambassador (part of the STEMNET programme); and as a NCCPE Public Engagement Ambassador (part of the Beacons for Public Engagement scheme). These roles have included a wide range of public engagement and science communication activities: interacting with students from schools and colleges, teachers, professional societies and even Members of Parliament! Examples include careers days and practical demonstrations of my work, to judging CREST and Young Engineers competitions, to presenting my research to MPs at an exhibition at the House of Commons. Many of these activities have been supported or encouraged by my professional society ?? the BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT. I sit on the committee for the BCS South Wales branch, which has a strong interest in public engagement (especially with schools) in Wales.

What are your top three tips for other researchers?

1. Most HEIs have some form of public engagement programme (which further reinforces the increasing importance of it), so I would definitely recommend using this as a     starting point.

2. Also, get involved in one of the main schemes, by becoming a STEM Ambassador or a NCCPE Public Engagement Ambassador, as this provides a structured framework (and support!) for doing science communication and public engagement with a range of audiences. This also puts you in contact with other people interested in public engagement in your region. You will also be able to get support from your professional/chartered institution.

3. The British Science Association runs a number of activities that are very high profile, such as the National Science and Engineering Week.

What are your top three resources to support your engagement work?

1. If you become an ambassador for a programme, take advantage of any pre-existing resources or tried and tested techniques for public engagement activities. My STEM Ambassadors Manager in Wales has a wide toolkit of activities to help in different situations and  audiences.

2. Try and build a network of people who are interested in public engagement and what you do and this could potentially help you in the future. A lot of time you are relying on people doing activities in their own time. If you have a good network of links in your region, this makes everything much easier.

3. Finally, try and embrace social networking tools such as Twitter - I have found out about numerous STEM and PE activities and resources that I may have otherwise overlooked. This also puts you in contact with other public engagement enthusiasts.

What would you say to encourage another researcher to engage with the public?

Definitely do it! It is both satisfying and rewarding and develops a wide range of skills. Not only does it increase the awareness and value of research to the wider public, but it can also enhance the quality and impact of your research and certainly raise your (and your institution's) profile.