In an age flooded with misinformation and contested truths, the role of evidence couldn’t be more important in showing what really works. But how did we come to use evidence — and why are some people rejecting it today?
Award-winning Nature journalist Helen Pearson will speak about her new book Beyond Belief: How Evidence Shows What Really Works. It tells the story of the ‘evidence revolution’ — the global movement that promotes the idea that scientific evidence should guide our decisions rather than unreliable opinions or beliefs.
Beyond Belief examines the rise of evidence-based medicine and how the principle of using evidence to determine ‘what works’ is now transforming fields from government policy and education to policing and conservation — as well as the many obstacles the evidence movement faces today. Is there a public crisis of trust in science and evidence? And how can evidence stand out amidst the torrent of questionable claims online?
Essential reading for the rational-minded, Beyond Belief is an engaging portrait of the mavericks, visionaries and rebels who share the simple belief that decisions based on evidence make the world a better place.
Bio: Helen Pearson is an award-winning science journalist and editor at Nature and was named European Science Journalist of the Year 2025. She is also an Honorary Professor of Practice at University College London, teaching science writing and journalism. Helen’s first book, The Life Project, was named science book of the year by The Observer and was a book of the year for The Economist. Her second book, Beyond Belief was published in April and named a Financial Times best summer book of 2026. Helen studied Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge and completed a Ph.D. in genetics at the University of Edinburgh.