Launch of Dundee Science Festival

Dundee school pupils are showcasing what science means to them as part of this year’s Dundee Science Festival.

Launched today, Monday 12 February 2024, Dundee Science Festival will run until Sunday 25 February 2024, with a host of free activities and workshops at Dundee Science Centre, as well as local community centres, partner venues and online.

The festival will also showcase the work of countless local school pupils vying for the inaugural Lord Provost STEM Inspiration Award.  The challenge tasked school pupils, working individually or in pairs, to submit a poster, video or model illustrating what science means to them, and what inspires them to study and enjoy STEM subjects.

The challenge attracted over 100 entries from across the city which are now on show at Dundee Science Centre. Judged by Dundee Science Centre and Dundee City Council, the winner will be announced later this month, securing a selection of science-related prizes and a free class visit to the centre.

Lord Provost of Dundee Bill Campbell, said, “We are very lucky to have such a fantastic asset in our city as we do in the Dundee Science Centre, hosting the annual Dundee Science Festival and putting on a wide range of exciting and engaging activities for all ages. I am honoured to have been asked to officially open this year’s event and I feel confident the various workshops, events and demonstrations taking place will be well supported over the festival fortnight.

“It is positive to note that there are imaginative science, technology, engineering and mathematics entries from city schoolchildren for the first ever Lord Provost STEM Inspiration Award. By showcasing these entries during this year’s Dundee Science Festival, I hope that we can inspire more young people to get involved with the STEM subjects.”

From crafting bug hotels, and building inventions with recycled materials to discovering if you have an ear for Scotland’s accents, free activities will run every day at Dundee Science Centre. Visitors of all ages can also take part in countless tech challenges, creating robotic creatures with ‘Strawbees’, testing- yet-to-be-launched computer games and exploring Scotland’s birdlife through VR headsets.

Dundee Science Festival will include activities from the universities of Abertay, Dundee and St Andrews as well as a range of other organisations, including Dundee-based Scrapantics, Konglomerate Games, Our Dynamic Earth, Scottish Seabird Centre and the RSPB.

The festival will also branch into various partner venues including Discovery Point, The McManus, Mills Observatory and St Andrews Botanic Garden.  A number of free festival workshops will also be held across Dundee, including Kirkton Community Centre, The Hub Library, Coldside Community Library, Ardler Complex, Arthurstone Library and many others.

Isabel Bruce, CEO of Dundee Science Centre, commented, “Dundee Science Festival exists to inspire, entertain and challenge people of all ages and backgrounds to explore and question the world around them.

“For that reason, it’s fitting to capture and bottle the vision of our local young people, to get them thinking about the environment around them, from the buildings and parks they play in to the food they eat and the way they travel.  The Lord Provost STEM Inspiration Award presents us with a real opportunity to enthuse young people in all things STEM. In the process, we motivate a new generation of responsible citizens and passionate change-makers while also creating a platform to simply enjoy the sheer wonder and fascination of science in its endless forms. As Dundee Science Festival kicks off, we hope this year’s programme will spark exciting conversations and debates within families and wider communities and encourage us all to appreciate and protect the amazing world around us.” 

Dundee Science Festival 2024 is funded in part by Scottish Government, The Edina Trust, Michelin Tyre Plc. and NCR.    

For more information, visit https://www.dundeesciencecentre.org.uk/festival/