Activities within the scope of this programme
Project Inspire Activities Within Scope
We want you to use your local knowledge and experience to tell us what will work for your participants and what you want to achieve working with these groups. We really want you to tell us what will be great with your communities.
- You may combine digital and non-digital (remote engagement), so long as the digital component is a vital and integral part of the interactions and engagement.
- Digital for this project covers everything from online activities and engagement, to augmented or virtual reality, new technologies with universities, new apps or new ways to use existing apps with communities, podcasts and more. Some examples are below.
What do we mean by innovative?
We ask that your proposals are innovative. This is defined by a collaborative approach and a shared sense of ownership with the community. This project provides an opportunity to experiment with something new in order to build trust with audiences, exchange knowledge and build public insight into the public offer. We note that this does not need to be activities which no-one has ever done before but should be something your centre has not tried which puts audience and community in the driving seat.
Examples of activities in scope
The examples below give you a flavour of the types of projects that would be eligible. At the Bidders call and the Ideation session in January we'll share examples in more detail with speakers to expand on how the projects work and there will be a chance for any questions you may have.
- Working with local groups such as young carers or deaf communities to create a STEM project that is part digital and part hands-on that families can participate in at home and online with others.
- Using haptic technology to engage communities with touch, for example using vibrations to feel objects, sensations or textures using a phone.
- Nurture groups of young people through an online creative programme to make a difference in the world by creating their own digital social action project. For example https://kwmc.org.uk/projects/maker-city-x-stemettes/
- Creating an online community with regular interactions through a range of digital mechanisms, co-created with your target communities.
- Developing special activities and ways to get involved in your hands-on and online experiments in multiple languages by working with certain communities.
- Get involved in Citizen Sensing and help communities use digital and online sources to collect and share science data in participatory ways on their local areas, looking at air quality, noise, traffic to participate digitally and make decisions locally.
- Creating how to videos, for example: How to draw a dinosaur, How to help the planet, with the help of community or youth groups.
- Working with Augmented Reality and VR, for example working with current technology and available software to bring people together in collaborative spaces on the moon,or explore the environment and planet online.
- Using the social media platform TikTok to engage new audiences and families with STEM through competitions, science videos, behind the scenes tours, or joining together for citizen science projects as a community.
- Creating themed digital and hands-on science to try at home for brownies and badged groups, youth groups and families from the target areas of your region, and working with local partners such as foodbanks to ensure they are (#ScienceAtHome)
- Finding ways to bring groups, families, adults and others out into the open air to try something new in STEM, for example using collaborating around CitizenScience projects or Guinness World Record attempts.
- Creating or using podcasts and videos that bring science alive and grow this interest over many months by creating a community of STEM interest across new areas of your city.
- Working with youth groups and others online communities to create Science hack videos, or climate and environment videos so they can share these online.
- Working with artists or musicians to gather groups of young people online to create something together – eg all making parts of an artwork or music video and stitching this together online.
- Consider setting up a Creative Hub, or Maker space virtually and working with local youth groups or afterschool STEM clubs.
- Encouraging people to go outside for (Covid-safe) walks and using digital methods to create an inspirational surround experience around their neighbourhood. Perhaps linked with your local Smart City initiatives and sustainable city programmes.
- Using toys (eg a toy dog in Go Walkeez) for children and families who are nervous and on a first visit explore your Science Centre to make the environment feel less threatening.
- Create an app co-created with a local community group that allows people to access your centre and peek behind the scenes, in many languages.
- Partner with community or other groups to Create a Night in the Science Centre experience or Big party night in, in BSL, or other languages participating together from home.
A list of examples with links to organisations that have done similar projects is on our Padlet page here: padlet.com/sciencecentres/Inspiring_Digital_Engagement
