Since Andrea was young, she was always curious about the natural phenomena around her. “Undoubtedly, I got this curiosity from my father. He was a medical doctor, but his interest in the world did not know any barriers. No matter what, he was always trying to discover something new about the natural environment around him”, she explains. Her father went on expeditions to caves and usually brought samples of carcasses, such as frogs, snakes, and even spiders that he found during his adventures. His stories accumulated into a far-reaching fascination of those idiosyncrasies for her sister and Andrea herself. Both of them pursued a career in science. After five and a half years of academia in Ecuador, Andrea graduated from the Biology programme and thus could refer to herself as a biologist. 

“I dedicated seven years of my life to science and I loved it. However, along the way I thought… academia: while it is important for societal advancement, I also figured it was not accessible to everyone. It is a privilege to be part of a tight-knit community of scientists”. According to Andrea, many things stay within the technical sphere and the knowledge exchange is mainly limited to inner academic circles. After her studies in Ecuador, she decided to move to France where Andrea gained her first experience with something named science communication. “I opted to quit science and dedicated my professional life to communication and mediation”.

“I am trying to build bridges between the general public and scientists. The technicisms of science are not really necessary when you want outsiders to understand your work as a scientist. Science should be accessible to everyone. I believe that everyone can understand science, but communication is key in it”, she says. Showing that science shares dimensions with art, photography, and other disciplines contribute to the contextualisation of science whilst also understanding its value. 

Colectiva-Mente (RoCur), as the project is named, aims to have curadores (curators) in charge of their platform on Twitter and to communicate science in their own words. Giving control of the platform to a scientist requires them to convey the core message in undemanding, understandable phrases. “Even among academics, not everyone does the same kind of work. Whatever an ecologist knows, does not necessarily align with the knowledge framework of a mathematician”, she states. Scientists that are involved in her project, will receive tips and tricks in order to get their messages across on the platform. Some of the curators use visual aids, such as emojis instead of words. “It is amazing what they can do. They have the ability to express their own personality through our platform as well”. Some of them make little jokes or mix their research with elements and examples of pop culture.

Andrea’s project mainly focuses on scientists that can share their science in the Spanish language. There are various rotation creation accounts, and the concept is well-established in the communication world. Countless of these platforms can be found in English, French, and even German. “I had not seen one in Spanish before, especially not the way we do it. In the academic world, science is communicated in English in a very technical way. You know, I just wanted to appreciate a space in which you could read science in Spanish, because English is usually considered as the norm. We are obligated to publish our work in English. It is hard. We often get discouraged by the linguistic corrections during the publication process, which makes it even more laborious. Sharing science in different languages, opens up a door not only to the culture of the person who is disseminating the science, but also nuances it through the use of their mother tongue”. Andrea’s curators do not necessarily have to be from Spanish speaking nations. “Everyone does their best to share science knowledge the best they can in the Spanish language. Reading about science in Spanish creates this new dimension because the language itself is very detailed when compared to English, for instance. I think that reading science in Spanish gives this broad overview of how the Spanish scientists share what they know, and I am pretty sure it can be applied to any other field.”