Project Summary
The current state of learning and engagement is much more audiovisual than it has been. Additionally, the use of cartoons can help break down certain social barriers and have the potential to promote thinking and discussion on critical and important societal issues such as climate change conservation, and transportation safety culture. A growing amount of literature supports the use of art as an effective means of science communication because of the visceral and emotional responses that are elicited when engaging the imagination. To that end, cartoons(i.e., comic panels) are used here to present timely and relevant transportation safety issues addressed at the Center for Safety Equity in Transportation (CSET), a Tier 1 University Transportation Center led by the University of Alaska Fairbanks with partners at the University of Hawaii, University of Idaho, and University of Washington. By blending art and deep knowledge of transformative engineering research, the authors hope to help the public better understand and digest complex transportation safety issues.
