Informal Science Education on the NASA Climate Change Website: Addressing the Challenge of Educating Diverse Audiences

The report finds that while education levels influence the types of questions people have about climate change and their initial perceptions of NASA, the NASA climate change website is accessible to all education levels and effectively improves perceptions of NASA's competency and trust, particularly for those with less formal education. While the website did not eliminate pre-existing knowledge gaps, it helped less-educated visitors learn more and increased their certainty regarding the reality and impacts of climate change.

• Information needs differ by education level: college graduates are more likely to ask about solutions and scientific research, whereas those with a high school education are more likely to question if climate change is real.
• Formal education does not hinder a user's ability to find information on the NASA climate website; all education groups were equally successful in finding information and felt it answered their questions.
• While all education groups rated the website positively, those with more education found it more engaging, easier to use, and more trustworthy.
• Visiting the website significantly improved perceptions of NASA's research volume, scientist competency, and trustworthiness across all groups, with the most pronounced gains seen among those with less education.
• The website increased certainty that climate change is happening, particularly for visitors with less education, although a gap remained compared to college graduates.
• The website helped reduce the knowledge gap regarding the impacts of climate change, as those with less education showed larger gains in identifying correct impacts than those with bachelor's degrees or more.
• The website did not significantly alter perceptions regarding whether climate change is solvable, though some high school graduates became less likely to say it cannot be reduced.
• The website had a limited impact on the scientific consensus 'gateway belief,' with college graduates maintaining higher estimates of the proportion of scientists who believe human-caused climate change is happening.

APA

Roser-Renouf, C., Myers, T., & Maibach, E. (2020). Informal Science Education on the NASA Climate Change Website: Addressing the Challenge of Educating Diverse Audiences. Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Roser-Renouf-et-al.-2020-ISE-on-NASA-Climate-Website.pdf

Chicago

Roser-Renouf, Connie, Teresa Myers, and Edward Maibach. Informal Science Education on the NASA Climate Change Website: Addressing the Challenge of Educating Diverse Audiences. Center for Climate Change Communication, 2020. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Roser-Renouf-et-al.-2020-ISE-on-NASA-Climate-Website.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Roser-Renouf |first1=Connie |last2=Myers |first2=Teresa |last3=Maibach |first3=Edward |title=Informal Science Education on the NASA Climate Change Website: Addressing the Challenge of Educating Diverse Audiences |publisher=Center for Climate Change Communication |date=2020 |url=https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Roser-Renouf-et-al.-2020-ISE-on-NASA-Climate-Website.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{roserrenouf2020informal, author = {Roser-Renouf, Connie and Myers, Teresa and Maibach, Edward}, title = {{Informal Science Education on the NASA Climate Change Website: Addressing the Challenge of Educating Diverse Audiences}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2020}, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Roser-Renouf-et-al.-2020-ISE-on-NASA-Climate-Website.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }