Workshops
From Field Notes to Front Page: How to Tell Stories About Your Research That People Will Remember
Date: 16 February 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Location: Arts West Building, The University of Melbourne Parkville
Cost: $30 (incl. GST)
Facilitators: Dr Michael Wheeler
About the workshop:
You’ve got great data and important conservation stories – but how do you make busy people care? In this highly interactive workshop, Dr Michael Wheeler (Lecturer in Science Communication and co-founder/co-host of the Let’s Talk SciComm podcast) will share practical tools for turning your biodiversity research into clear, compelling narratives for any audience.
Science in a Blender: Reconstructing & Animating Animals in 3D!
Date: 16 February 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Location: Arts West Building, The University of Melbourne Parkville
Cost: Free (student); $20 (non-student)
Facilitators: Astrid O’Connor
About the workshop:
Do you like looking at 3D animations? Have you ever wanted to elevate a presentation with 3D models? Or, have you ever seen a skeleton laid out on a table and wondered what it would look like walking, swimming, or flying around? Wonder no longer! This workshop will run you through the basics of the free, open-source 3D modelling program Blender and how to apply it in zoological and paleontological visual communications.
Your host is the pile of bones named Astrid O’Connor - an experienced science communicator and creator of a digital library of 3D extinct Aussie animal reconstructions.
You’ll explore the controls of Blender, show some of its potential, detail why it isn’t too overwhelming, and then use a couple of example animal skeletons to showcase reconstruction and animation rigging processes. Then, we will expand on the usability of these models by rendering and displaying them in Sketchfab (see Astrid’s animated examples) and PowerPoint. If you would like to follow along with the worked examples, it would be most useful to bring your laptop along and download the latest version of Blender (free at blender.org) beforehand.