1. Embrace the power of communication through the arts – take risks and enjoy the journey; you will be amazed at the impact the arts can bring to science and the ways the power with which they can engaging people in ways that traditional methods often struggle. Even within our own organisations new interpretations and reframing can open up new discussion and bring renewed passion to tackling complex subjects.
2. Get help when you need it – bring in specialist skills for art commissioning to help ensure the end product is very high quality.

Delivering a creative project

1. Provide space for ideas to grow – let artists have their artistic integrity and freedom especially the criticality and visual aesthetic they bring to a subject.
2. Laughter is a great communicator – it is important to find levity even in what feels like a ‘bad news’ subject.
3. Commit to socialising – don’t underestimate the effort it takes to create and nurture a conversation with local people on social media.
4. Think about participation – consider what role audience members can have in creating art works, reinterpreting the subject, debate or campaigning.

Successful project management

1. Expect the unexpected… – stay flexible with your approach so that you can take advantage of unanticipated opportunities. The ideas with which you start may not be those with which you end. But that’s ok as long as you stay true to the vision and the impact you want to have.
2. Work smart with partners – do your research to identify a handful of main partners that are going to be really active in the project and share the project’s common vision. Be purposeful; work together to create a memorandum of understanding at the beginning so everyone knows their role and revisit this at key moments in the project to make sure it is still relevant. Secondary partners are important too but won’t work on the project as intensively.

Be as thoughtful about the end as the start

1. Share, share, share and then celebrate – make opportunities to share ideas, problems and solutions and find time to celebrate when things work well.
2. Leave something behind – carefully consider what you want the legacy of the project to be and how this will be a ‘living’ legacy.