Rojak science – A gastronomical path to science communication in Singapore

Author: Linda Sellou – National University of Singapore, Singapore

Co-authors:
Kim Yong Lim – National University of Singapore

The city-state of Singapore may be described as a nation of high achievers, be it in economics, technology or even education. Singapore is also a profoundly multicultural and multilingual society that has four official languages (English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil). The communication of science, in this Rojak (a Malay term for “eclectic mix”) society, brings its own challenges. However, one thing connects everyone and makes everything simpler: food!

We organised a series of outreach events that focused on the science of cooking. The targeted audiences were school children, families and professionals. The programme was developed and conducted with science and engineering undergraduates. Our primary goal was to reinvent local delights to emphasise science. Another was to engage the different social communities. The initiative allowed the undergraduates to infuse their respective cultural backgrounds into the task of science communication. This lead to the development of culturally informed strategies to reach and engage diverse audiences.

This talk discusses the development of this programme, the various interactions with the different audiences and the impact on all the stakeholders.

The author has not yet submitted a copy of the full paper.

Presentation type: Individual paper
Theme: Science
Area of interest: Comparing science communication across cultures