Host of top names to take part in ‘weird and wonderful’ online NI Science Festival

The NI Science Festival is set to return next month after revealing its seventh annual programme boasting more than 80 online public events.
By Helen McGurk
Published 16th Jan 2021, 08:00 BST
‘Gastronaut’ Stefan Gates will explore the bizarre science behind our food‘Gastronaut’ Stefan Gates will explore the bizarre science behind our food
‘Gastronaut’ Stefan Gates will explore the bizarre science behind our food

The STEM celebration will return for a fortnight of wonder and intrigue from February 15 –28.

Covering everything from the natural world, our planet, and the vast expanse of space to engineering, robotics, physics, the mind and body, food and much more, the festival will present some of the most prominent scientific minds, thought-leading academics, and captivating authors.

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Adopting a digital format this year, the programme is packed with interactive workshops, engaging talks and discussions, screenings and more for audiences of all ages. The festival will also host a dedicated programme of online events for schools and educators the week before the festival opens ( February 8 – 12.

Among this year’s highlights is a partnership with National Geographic that will see the festival host a series of online talks with prominent science communicators, including well-known BBC science presenter Greg Foot, marine biologist Lucy Hawkes, award-winning natural history photographer Jeff Kerby, TV presenter and wildlife filmmaker Malaika Vaz, and ocean-focused bioengineer Kakani Katija.

World-renowned physicist Katie Mack will be in conversation with festival favourite Jim Al-Khalili discussing her book The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking), an exploration into the future of the cosmos and how it might reach its ultimate demise (Sunday 28).

From rewilding large predators to conservation, sustainability and climate change, the festival will host a series of events focusing on the natural world, including a conversation with Northern Ireland’s own Dara McAnulty, whose debut book, Diary of a Young Naturalist, won the Wainwright prize for nature writing in 2020 (Saturday 20).

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Reflecting on a challenging year, scientists from the Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine (WWIEM) at Queen’s University Belfast will discuss how they are helping the global fight against the virus in Spotlight on Covid-19 Research (Thursday 18).

Festival director, Chris McCreery, said: “Given the year that has been it is fitting that we kickstart 2021 with a festival such as ours that exists to enlighten and ignite interest in STEM. Never before have issues such as the impact of human behaviour on the environment or the remarkable advances in scientific and medical research held such prominence in the public consciousness.”

For more information about NI Science Festival events and bookings, visit nisciencefestival.com.