Amy Sharma, PhD is the executive director of Science for Georgia, an organization whose mission is to advocate for the responsible use of science in public policy, improve communication between scientists and the public, and increase public engagement with science. She chatted with ESAL about the value of factual scientific support to state legislators and interpersonal relationships between scientists and other community members.

Christopher Kan is a biologist by training and a biotech professional working at the intersection of biology, people, and business. Kan recently gained local attention for his leadership in a two-year campaign to create a safe parking program in the church lot. Learn about how Kan navigated the local approval process to make four spots available for unhoused people to stay in their cars overnight and how his science communication skills helped bring the project to fruition.

The Vaccination Conversations with Scientists program is a collaborative effort between volunteer scientists and engineers at Cornell and local county health departments to answer questions about vaccine safety and COVID-19 in the community. ESAL spoke with Kara Fikrig, Kara Rode Webber, and Rachael Skye to learn about their approach to overcoming vaccine hesitancy.