Researchers, are you interested in taking part in the FUTURES Festival taking place across September 2023? Take a look at the activities offering researchers the opportunity to get involved.
FUTURES is a festival of discovery that celebrates the research and innovation taking place right across the South West of England, with over 300 researchers participating in a wide range of public events.
FUTURES is a unique opportunity to engage a broad audience with your research. You’ll not only raise awareness about your research but also discuss ideas that may shape the research and its impacts on society and develop your skills in public engagement with research.
There are two types of activities in Bristol at FUTURES:
Research exhibits – Exciting hands-on exhibits will give you a platform to have conversations about your research and its relevance in answering societal and environmental problems to inspire children, families and individuals to be curious, think about how big challenges are overcome and consider becoming scientists and researchers.
Storytelling – Bring your research to life through the medium of storytelling, help break stereotypes of what it means to be a researcher and find your voice to master storytelling and produce compelling and entertaining stories.
FUTURES will take place across various dates in September and October 2023.
We are looking for researchers to be involved in several festival activities. These include:
“The best thing about FUTURES was inspiring the next generation” Researcher
New to FUTURES, this activity puts you and your research into the heart of a popular shopping centre in central Bristol, giving you lots of opportunities to engage people as they pass through this busy shopping area. You will be one of a small number of exhibits engaging shoppers with your hands-on activity, demo or simulation, designed to engage audiences in novel ways. You will attend training and receive support to develop an exhibit that shows why research is relevant to everyday life, and inspires people to be curious, think about how big challenges are overcome, and consider becoming scientists and researchers. You’ll develop skills to communicate your research to diverse audiences who might not usually engage with university activities and be able to explain what difference your research could make. Public Engagement/FUTURES staff will support this drop-in activity.
“Up Late was really enjoyable as I had more time to interact with individuals and this time allowed greater exploration of the subject.” Researcher
“My daughter (7 years old) was really engaged in lots of the research…At the end she said ‘I don’t want to leave.” Participant
Showcase your research at an evening’s “take over” of Brunel’s SS Great Britain. You will be part of 15 interactive and hands-on exhibits showcasing cutting-edge research from all disciplines across the University. Your exhibit, based in either the Theatre or Museum, will give children and adults a chance to see into the exciting world of research. You will attend training and receive support to develop an exhibit that shows why research is relevant to everyday life, and inspires people to be curious, think about how big challenges are overcome, and consider becoming scientists and researchers. The training will give you a range of techniques to communicate your research. The event will also give you an opportunity to share your exciting research with the public and hear their responses. This event is a free ticket event and is marketed for adults and families.
“The storytelling training workshop [and] Researchers’ Tales…were all fun. It was good to interact with members of the public about my research as well as hear their insights” Researcher
“It was awesome! Great way to link storytelling and science. Engaging and fun.” Participant
In the fitting setting of the library at Brunel’s SS Great Britain, you will perform short stories about your research and career to families and adults, bringing your research to life and breaking stereotypes of what it means to be a researcher. You will receive in-depth training from a professional storyteller to help you find your voice, master storytelling skills and produce compelling and entertaining stories. The training will help increase your confidence and improve your understanding of what powerful storytelling is. Researchers Tales gives you an opportunity to celebrate and present your research in an accessible and impactful way. There will be a rehearsal one week before the event with a professional storyteller, where talks will be organised into groups. There will also be a compere on the night to support delivery. Researchers Tales is part of Up Late, an evening’s “take over” of Brunel’s SS Great Britain, a free ticket event marketed for adults and families.
Science Showoff is a comedy event where scientists and engineers use comedy and to share their research and/or their lives as scientists. Over the course of the evening, a line-up of scientists and engineers taking to the stage for just nine minutes to perform their set, with the whole night compered expertly by professional comedian Steve Cross. This opportunity involves three elements: a full day’s training session, some homework tasks and participation in the event itself at the Wardrobe Theatre. The training is a unique opportunity to develop your knowledge of different techniques to communicating your research, your skills in communication, and build your confidence in presenting your research. Whilst the focus of this is non-academic audiences, everything you learn will be easily transferable to other areas of your research. For more information and to express an interest, please contact Dean Veall dwv20@bath.ac.uk.
“I did the Schools Research Fair and was amazed at how interested the kids were and how excited they were.” Researcher
Showcase your research to school children (aged 7-14 years) during this interactive, busy school research fair. Deliver hands-on experiments, demos and simulations, designed to engage pupils in novel ways. Whether you deliver an exhibit as an individual or as part of a group, your exhibit will introduce the relevance of research in investigating environmental and societal problems and inspire pupils to be curious, think about how big challenges are overcome and consider becoming scientists and researchers. Taking part in the training and the event will improve your communication skills, build your confidence in presenting your research and give you the skills to simplify complicated research without losing its essence. Schools with a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils will be given greater priority to attend morning or afternoon sessions. New for this year, we will also have a “Quiet Hour”, during the Schools Research Fair, where pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) will attend, training will be provided to help support this delivery.
Individual researchers, research teams and postgraduate research students from all faculties are encouraged to apply. FUTURES is open to those who are new to public engagement/FUTURES and to those who have public engagement experience. The FUTURES team will endeavour to enable as many researchers as possible to take part in FUTURES, but places are limited.
Before you apply to be part of FUTURES, you are encouraged to speak to a Public Engagement Associate about ideas for your exhibit and “hook” http://www.bristol.ac.uk/public-engagement/contact-us/
For individuals and groups applying to deliver a research exhibit, we will provide:
For individuals applying for Researchers Tales, we will provide:
If you’re interested in taking part in the FUTURES Festival, sign yourself up by filling out our FUTURES Application Form: https://forms.office.com/e/g9LaV8ZhEQ The deadline for submissions is Monday 26 June, 12pm.
We’re also running online FUTURES Information Sessions, come along and find out more about the Festival. Drop the FUTURES Team an email (futures-project@bristol.ac.uk) for more details.
For any questions about the FUTURES Festival activities or ideas you might have, please email futures-project@bristol.ac.uk or for support in developing your application contact a Public Engagement Associate