Communities key in ‘science storytelling’
SOME genetic researchers who do not engage closely with local communities are harming relationships and sometimes adding to misunderstandings about ancient migration patterns in the Pacific.
Prof Lisa Matisoo Smith, of the University of Otago anatomy department, made those comments during a keynote address at a major Public Communication of Science and Technology conference at the university yesterday.
She gave her keynote talk, on ‘‘the Powers and Pitfalls of Science Storytelling in the Pacific’’, to about 300 people at 1pm.
Engaging with the public was ‘‘essential for science communication’’ and ‘‘for science more generally’’, she said.
‘‘Storytelling is a valuable tool for communicating with and engaging the public, but it can also be a dangerous weapon if used irresponsibly,’’ she said.
She reflected on her experience, over the past 25 years, as a biological anthropologist, in using molecular tools — both ancient and modern DNA analyses — ‘‘to answer questions about human migrations in the Pacific’’.
She has focused mainly on identifying the origins of Pacific peoples and their closely associated plants and animals, to ‘‘better understand the settlement, history and prehistory of the Pacific and New Zealand’’.
She highlighted ‘‘some of the lessons’’ she had learnt about the storytelling over that time, including the value of engaging closely with New Zealand and other Pacific communities through ‘‘talking stories’’.
Science storytelling had ‘‘opened doors for new research opportunities with Pacific communities’’.
But she also warned about potential ‘‘negative impacts on community engagement’’ and scientific research.
In one case, researchers had tried to assert links between two skulls found in a Latin American museum and some Pacific peoples, without taking into account the likelihood the skulls may have been accidentally mislabelled in the museum.
In another case, questionable inferences had been drawn from some skulls found in a grave, she said.
Prof Matisoo-Smith is one of 13 principal investigators in the international Genographic Project, and is responsible for sampling the Pacific region.
The project is a genetic anthropology study that aims to map historical human migration patterns by collecting and analysing DNA samples.