FHS professor wins newsmaker award for inspiring dialogue for change
Adapted with permission from SFU News
by Matt Kieltyka
Engagement is at the heart of creating change, educating the public and sparking conversations that influence policy and this year’s Simon Fraser University Newsmaker award recipients all share a passion for using their voices as a vehicle for good.
SFU’s 2024 Newsmaker award recipients are chosen for their dedication to informing discourse across media and online communities regarding various topics; from commentary on affordability in Canada, engaging with the public about urban wildlife interactions, to helping people understand more about natural hazards and the impacts of climate change.
Dr. Kaylee Byers
FHS Assistant Professor
2024 Emerging Thought Leader Newsmaker of the Year
Kaylee Byers, assistant professor of health sciences, is the 2024 Simon Fraser University Emerging Thought Leader (ETL) Newsmaker Award recipient. As one of SFU’s most-published and quoted media spokespeople in Canada and abroad, Kaylee has had a meteoric rise as a science communicator. Her numerous insightful articles for The Conversation and her work as the host of Nice Genes! podcast exemplify the impact that thoughtful and engaging science communication can have on public understanding.
“I’ve been really dedicated to science communication for many years. It’s something that is really important to me so this award is very meaningful,” says Kaylee. “I love science, I love talking about it and sharing it with people. But beyond the fact that I’m just a giant science nerd, I do think science communication is important for a number of reasons.
“The public deserves to know what we’re doing in the research space and I think public engagement overall increases science literacy, which builds trust and supports people in making evidence-informed decisions.”
An expert on environmental health, Kaylee’s public engagement around human and animal interaction in urban settings, and her work with the Vancouver Rat Project, led her to participating in the inaugural National Urban Rat Summit in New York City in 2024, which made international headlines.
“I think there’s an innate interest in the wildlife that we share our cities with and that awareness is shaping how cities approach wildlife and our relationship to them. How do we solve this problem?” she says. “The summit is a tangible example of how this conversation in the public and the news culminated in change across multiple cities.”
Already a strong proponent in science communication, Kaylee says the ETL Newsmaker of the Year award serves as motivation but won’t change her approach.
“I am grateful to be recognized in this way, but I don’t think my commitment to science communication could be any higher,” she laughs.
To see the other 2024 SFU Newsmakers of the Year, visit SFU News now.
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