Stem Cells @ Lunch Digested is a weekly public-facing podcast featuring prominent scientists from the stem cell field interviewed by staff and students from the Centre for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine(CSCRM) Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine. To date, the playlist counts 135 episodes with 24,000 plays. From its inception in 2016 by a trio of researchers running a biweekly seminar, the podcast has evolved in terms of processes, teams and technology. In this session, Public Engagement Officer Jess Sells and PhD students Ella Hubber and Emily Read will share their experiences of managing and producing the podcast through its ever-changing journey. What has worked well? What challenges have they faced? How did they adapt during lockdown?

About the facilitators

Ella Hubber

Ella is a PhD student on the Wellcome Trust Cell Therapies and Regenerative Medicine Doctoral Training Programme. She is in the final year of her research studies in the Department of Diabetes(opens in a new tab). Outside of the lab, Ella is very involved in science outreach and communication, from tutoring KS4 pupils with the Brilliant Club to creating an interactive exhibition based on her research with students from Goldsmiths, University of London.

Emily Read

Emily is a PhD student on the Wellcome Trust Cell Therapies and Regenerative Medicine Doctoral Training Programme, where she is in the final year of her research studies in the Centre for Host Microbiome Interactions. Outside of the laboratory, Emily has been involved in science outreach and communication, hosting the Stem Cells @ Lunch Digested podcast, completing an internship at the Science Media Centre and engaging with school students. She is also passionate about lab sustainability, working in the Sustainability team at King’s.

Jessica Sells

Jess is the Public Engagement Officer at the Centre for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine(opens in a new tab) in the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine(opens in a new tab). Originally trained as a Lab Technician, Jess fell in love with public engagement and science communication. Whilst working at the CSCRM she has facilitated the engagement of over 100,000 members of the public with research in a wide variety of methods, including school visits, interactive workshops, large scale public events, public-facing podcasts and science-art exhibitions to name a few.