Journal & Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, vol. 152, part 3, 2020, pp. 291–294. ISSN 0035-9173/20/030291-04

Editorial: Sharing knowledge in the spirit of Humboldt

Ingrid Piller Linguistics Department, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract This editorial introduction provides an overview of the design of the 2019 Biennial Symposium of the Australian and New Zealand Associations of von Humboldt Fellows, which took place at Macquarie University, 22–24 November 2019. Under the theme “Sharing Knowledge in the Spirit of Humboldt,” the conference provided a space to reflect on Humboldt’s legacy as a research communicator and to engage with contemporary challenges of research communication, dissemination, and impact.

Introduction “a great burden and a great joy” to him, as his 019 marked the 250th anniversary of friend Rahel Varnhagen noted in her diary 2the birth of (Schwarz, 2018). Additionally, he was a pas- (1769–1859) and Humboldtians around sionate and popular public speaker: in , the world took the opportunity to reflect his public lectures held everyone enthralled, on Humboldt’s legacy. Humboldt Fel- were the talk of the town, and made head- lows in Australia and New Zealand came line news. In , he was the star of the together during their biennial symposium salons and his half-hour talks — sometimes (Macquarie University, 22–24 November as many as five in one evening — dazzled 2019) to focus specifically on Humboldt as fellow researchers and the fashionable world a research communicator in order to explore alike (Wulf, 2015). contemporary challenges related to research Humboldt also pioneered science as spec- communication. These challenges relate to tacle through his organization of academic ongoing transformations of the academy conferences, and his relentless lobbying for brought about by the digital revolution, the renovation of Berlin’s observatory or the academic capitalism, and globalisation. construction of a zoo open to the public (Daum, 2018). Humboldt as research communicator Humboldt lived at a time when the nature Humboldt was not only a pioneering of knowledge itself was undergoing massive researcher, explorer and thinker but also an transformations. These included the popu- extraordinary research communicator. His larization of knowledge as science came book Views of Nature (2011 [1850]), for within reach of the emerging middle classes example, became an international bestseller, or the commodification of knowledge as was translated into eleven languages, and science became an object of bourgeois con- continues to be published and widely read sumption (Daum, 2018). While certainly even today. In addition to his academic independent of Humboldt, Humboldt’s publications, he maintained a global cor- research and, even more so, the ways in respondence: in one year alone, 1856, he which he communicated his research, fed wrote around 4,000 letters, which was both these transformations throughout Europe.

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Contemporary challenges in research The 2019 Humboldt Symposium communication To this end, the 2019 Humboldt Sympo- As in the early 19th century, the nature of sium had “Sharing Knowledge in the Spirit knowledge itself is being transformed yet of Humboldt” as its guiding theme. This again in fundamental ways in the early 21st theme was addressed in five panels, which century. During Humboldt’s time, scientific constituted the core of the academic pro- enquiry and rational thought became foun- gram: dational to the constitution of knowledge. • Panel 1: Sharing knowledge through sci- Today, we see the relegation of science to one ence communication; opinion among many, in debates over matters • Panel 2: Sharing knowledge in a diverse ranging from climate change to vaccination. world; During Humboldt’s time, the challenge for researchers was to develop new chan- • Panel 3: Sharing knowledge beyond the nels through which to communicate knowl- academy; edge. Today, the challenge is for researchers • Panel 4: Sharing Knowledge between the to make their voices heard in the noise of Humanities and Sciences: Ethical treat- social media communications, which have ment of the dead and dying; created an “infodemic” every bit as danger- • Panel 5: Sharing knowledge through aca- ous as the Covid-19 pandemic in which we demic networks. find ourselves (Zarocostas, 2020). In keeping with the conference theme, the During Humboldt’s time, science was the symposium included a range of other for- domain of bourgeois white men who had mats, too. These comprised a public lecture, just cut knowledge loose from the shackles a series of eight speed talks, and an interac- of Latin and communicated in the burgeon- tive workshop devoted to sharing knowledge ing national languages of Europe. Today, the through media engagement. legitimacy of the white male voice is being The academic program was comple- questioned but scholars from the global mented by a social program consisting of a South, non-white scholars, women and welcome-to-country ceremony, a reception scholars from non-English-speaking back- and concert with songs from the German grounds are still struggling to gain authority Romantic Period, and a conference dinner in the academy (Piller, 2019a). in the iconic sandstone castle Curzon Hall, In the face of these challenges in research a converted former monastery. Addition- communication, the 2019 biennial sympo- ally, the conference featured a visual artist, sium of the Australian and New Zealand Sadami Konchi, who sketched conference Associations of von Humboldt Fellows participants. On social media, the Sympo- aimed to rethink what “sharing knowledge” sium was accompanied by a lively Twitter means in today’s world. It was a forum for presence. Under the hashtag #AvHMQ, debating the role of academic publishing, hundreds of tweets were published before, media engagement, social media, academic during and after the conference. networks, interdisciplinary collaboration, To view the full program, abstracts, and the increasing linguistic and cultural photos, sketches, and tweets, see the con- diversity of the academy. ference report (Piller, 2019b).

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The Special Issue The next two case studies move away from This special issues brings together some of the research communication with the wider papers presented at the conference. Gabri- public and consider researcher-to-researcher elle McMullen, the president of the Austral- communication across disciplinary and geo- ian Association of von Humboldt Fellows, graphical boundaries. opened the conference — and this special Alexandra Grey and Laura Smith-Khan issue — by introducing Alexander von Hum- show how early career researchers identified boldt as extraordinary research communica- a research gap related to language and the tor. One of our keynote speakers, Professor law and successfully built a research network Ingrid Gogolin, University, also connecting isolated researchers in the field. took her key from Alexander von Humboldt John Hearshaw introduces the International and examines how his lesser known ethno- Astronomical Union, which aims to promote graphic research was shaped by and contin- global collaboration in astronomy. ues to shape ideologies of national identity as The special issue ends with a research paper expressed through national monolingualism. in which Ronald Clarke re-visits Anfinsen’s Their papers are followed by a series of dogma in chemistry of “one sequence, one case studies of research communication in structure.” various contexts. Another of our keynote Abstracts of all conference presentations speakers, Professor Dietmar Höttecke, Ham- are available in Piller (2019b). burg University, examines who counts as Acknowledgements expert and how trust is established in the debate over safe levels of nitric oxide emis- In the name of the Australian and New Zea- sions. land Associations of von Humboldt Fellows In another case study, Adrian Dyer, S.R. and all the conference attendees, and in my Howard, and J.E. Garcia show how they role as the conference chair, I gratefully have been able to boost the impact of their acknowledge generous funding from the research by strategically communicating Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to through a variety of channels and flanking make the “Sharing Knowledge in the Spirit the traditional academic journal paper with of Humboldt” symposium and this publi- a concerted promotion campaign in more cation possible through their “Humboldt widely accessible media. How to reach wider Kolleg” program. audiences is also the topic of the next case We also wish to express our gratitude to study, where Nathan Kilah describes a school Emeritus Professor Robert Marks and the outreach project in his field of chemistry. Royal Society of NSW for taking on the Although chemistry is often perceived as an publication of this special issue. advanced science, he shows that it is possible to share its fascination even with students as young as primary school age.

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References Piller, I. (2019b) Final Report: Sharing Daum, A. W. (2018) “Popularisierung Knowledge in the Spirit of Humboldt. des Wissens”, in Ette, O. (ed.) Retrieved from https://www. Alexander von Humboldt-Handbuch: humboldtaustralia.org.au/wp-content/ Leben — Werk — Wirkung; J.B. Metzler, uploads/Final_Report_HumboldtKolleg2019. Stuttgart, 200–204. pdf Humboldt, A. v. (2011 [1850]) Views of Schwarz, I. (2018) “Die Korrespondenz”, in Nature: Or Contemplations on the Sublime Ette, O. (ed.) Alexander von Humboldt- Phenomena of Creation. Cambridge University Handbuch: Leben — Werk — Wirkung; J.B. Press, Cambridge, UK. Metzler, Stuttgart, 80–90. Piller, I. (2019a) On the conditions of Wulf, A. (2015) The invention of nature: authority in academic publics; Journal of Alexander von Humboldt’s new world. Alfred Sociolinguistics, 23(5), 521–528. Knopf, New York. Zarocostas, J. (2020) How to fight an infodemic; The Lancet, 395(10225), 676.

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