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Saf. Nucl. Waste Disposal, 2, 259–259, 2023
https://doi.org/10.5194/sand-2-259-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Open Access
Safety of Nuclear
Waste Disposal
W10: How can science communication support the search for a nuclear waste repository?
Let’s do science communication
Esther Kähler1, Katherin Wagenknecht2, Maike Weißpflug2, and Stefan Hellebrandt1
1Department F – Research/International, Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE),
10623 Berlin, Germany
2Department B – Participation, Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE),
10623 Berlin, Germany
Correspondence: Esther Kähler (esther.kaehler@base.bund.de)
Received: 31 March 2023 – Revised: 16 June 2023 – Accepted: 23 June 2023 – Published: 6 September 2023
Abstract. Germany is looking for a final repository for highly radioactive waste. This is a task for society as a
whole, requiring a broad participation process and, above all, a scientific basis. The process is still in its early
stages, but as the possible siting regions are narrowed down, public attention will increase significantly in the
coming years. This workshop explores the role of science communication within the search process.
Above all, the complex and scientific process must be transparent, comprehensible and understandable: sci-
ence communication is a key success factor in communicating scientific subject matter. The search for a reposi-
tory involves questions of geology as well as questions of scientific planning criteria and the legal basis for par-
ticipation. Also relevant are questions of ecological, economic and social regional development at the potential
site. For the support and participation in this interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary process, it is indispensable
to formulate the contents and positions in a generally understandable way.
In this workshop we will discuss the complex role of science communication in the repository search process.
How can scientific content from different disciplines be communicated? Which formats are suitable for commu-
nicating technical content in transdisciplinary discourses? What needs to be communicated in the context of the
search for a final repository? What content is essential for understanding the process? The workshop addresses
the participants as communicating scientists with practical experience or specific questions and invites the par-
ticipants to deal with these questions in a playful way: the basis for the workshop is a game plan that depicts and
explains the phases and the course of the process and presents the most important information of the scientific
process.
In the format of a world café, the participants will experience to which extent science communication plays
a role as an essential factor in the procedure. There will be two scenarios to play: on the one hand, the partici-
pants will be asked to deal with the question of which forms and contents are required for the procedure to be
conducted successfully. On the other hand, it is about dealing with the risks and challenges of misguided science
communication. For both scenarios, the task is to identify essential formats and content as well as points in time.
The participants will be asked to formulate concrete examples.
The player will go through each step in the search for a repository and discuss their influence as the commu-
nicating scientist on the success of the search. How can people be influenced by communication of risk topics,
and therefore how can this influence people’s attitude towards the process?
In addition to personal experience, scientific questions regarding necessary information during the phases of
the search will be generated in that format. How can science or science communication support the different
steps of the search?
Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE).