Annual Conference sessions
Browse all conference sessions since 2010
Science ♥ society
2019
"The blob: a genius without a brain".
2019
"Mathematics as Material Play"
Equity & Inclusion
2019
A blindfolded experience to grasp visual accessibility requirements.
Business & fundraising
2019
The session explores different models for financing our institutions and tackling the biggest challenges we face in the search for a diversified and balanced model.
Strategy & vision
2019
The Supreme Court of the Ecsite Conference will decide whether virtual reality (VR) in museums and science centres is visceral reality providing vital reactions, or just virtually rudimentary and very rubbish.
Research, theory & evaluation
2018
James Beacham is a particle physicist involved in the ATLAS experiment at CERN. Watch a video of his keynote.
Science ♥ society
2018
“Go forth and collide, Multiply and create” is the motto of our Science Assembly. Inspired by religious revival meetings, we will offer you songs, laughter, inspiration, and meaning.
Exhibit development
2018
Are you facilitating creative team processes? Tired of always using the same old tricks? Interested in the wider potential of creative techniques? This session is for you.
Strategy & vision
2018
What is the future of science centre exhibitions? Do we need to stick to scientific phenomena, or focus on high tech and current science? Do we concentrate on objects or interaction? Or are physical exhibitions becoming obsolete in the digital era?
Research, theory & evaluation
2017
Professor Alice Roberts is an anthropologist, author and broadcaster, and Professor of Public Engagement in Science at the University of Birmingham. Watch a video of her keynote.
Science ♥ society
2017
Nina Simon has been described as a “museum visionary” by Smithsonian Magazine for her audience-centred approach to design. Watch a video of her keynote.
Research, theory & evaluation
2016
Dr. Frans de Waal is a Dutch-American biologist and primatologist known for his work on the behaviour and social cognition of primates. Speech title: Prosocial Primates: The Cooperative Background of Our Species
Equity & Inclusion
2016
Dr. Elizabeth Rasekoala is the President of African Gong – the Pan-African Network for the Popularisation of Science & Technology, and Science Communication. Watch a video of her keynote.
2015
Andrea Illy is the Chairman and CEO of illycaffè S.p.A., a family coffee business founded more than 80 years ago. Watch his speech on Ecsite's YouTube channel.
Strategy & vision
2014
Professor Ian Goldin is Director of the Oxford Martin School and Professor of Globalisation and Development at Oxford University. He delivered a speech entitled "Individual and Collective Wisdom and Failure".
Science ♥ society
2014
Ahmet Üzümcü is the Director general of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The OPCW is the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2013.
Strategy & vision
2013
Dominique Pestre is a social and political historian.Hos speech was entitled "What kind of innovation for the Anthropocene?". Watch the keynote on the Ecsite YouTube channel.
Strategy & vision
2013
Susan Greenfield is a neuroscientist at the University of Oxford and delivered a speech entitled “ The neuroscience of creativity – Making the most of 21st century technology”. Watch the keynote on the Ecsite YouTube channel.
Strategy & vision
2012
Martin Rees, Professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge, gave a speech entitled "Space exploration, life and the cosmos".
Strategy & vision
2012
Carlo Ratti, Professor at the MIT, gave a talk entitled "Future Cities - The real-time city is now real!"
Science ♥ society
2011
Derrick de Kerckhove, Professor at the Department of French and former Director of the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology at the University of Toronto, gave a speech entitled "Navigating among the shoals and reefs of social, state and business controls in science and technology".
Strategy & vision
2011
Michael Jones Chief Technology Advocate, Google, gave a speech entitled "The Billionth Visitor".
The first Ecsite Conference took place in 1989. Here you can browse all Conference sessions since 2010. Use the search engine to look for people, topics...
Looking for an older session? Our digital records start in 2007, with programme pdfs attached to each conference page.
Creating a new or reinventing an old planetarium was never as easy as it is today. With 4k, 8k and 3D stereo full dome displays we can easily play it safe just choosing appropriate shows and displaying them within the dome. But is it enough to...
Today, an enormous amount of science news reaches the public via a multitude of channels – television, radio, internet, books, magazines, news agencies and research institutions. Not to mention science centres and museums. This session will...
Hands-on workshops are dominated by physics, chemistry and engineering experiments. What about biology? Are biologists closed in bio-labs, limited by a need for special equipment? We would like to show the best of short biology experiments which...
Explainers & visitor services
Stories are a powerful tool, but exhibitions with firm storylines raise questions about visitors’ freedom to explore content on their own. Should science exhibitions suggest paths or simply let visitors create their own journeys? What motivates...
Explainers & visitor services
Putting the visitor at the heart of what we do is essential to the appeal and success of a science centre or museum. But just how far are we prepared to go in applying this principle? How much freedom can we handle? Co-curation is the active...
Networking & Partnerships
The Lisbon Treaty commits the EU to the “development of a special relationship with neighbouring countries aiming to establish an area of prosperity and good neighbourliness, founded on the values of the Union and characterised by close and...
Do visitors learn in science museum exhibitions? Evaluation is one way of determining whether an exhibition or program meets its goals, however, a research approach is necessary to gauge if, and how much, learning takes place. When we observe...
When raising important social issues in science centres and museums there is often a question about how far we can or should go in presenting an issue, stating an opinion and asking visitors to take an active role. This approach is viewed by some...
The world of health bombards us with information, experts, opinions, fashions and fads. This panel will present three experimental projects that have engaged patients and young people by offering them the freedom to question and the freedom to...
Training teachers at the science centre or at the science museum is not always easy. Teachers are one of the main protagonists in schools (the other one are the students!) and they are the ‘specialists’ of teaching. Furthermore, very often they...
How can science centres and museums use current events in scientific research to engage their visitors? Should they be a conduit for research research institutions to reach their public? And how can science centres encourage visitors to...
Explainers & visitor services
Science centres and museums are not only places for celebrating scientific achievements and displaying science. They are also an ideal locations to engage the public with real scientific research. Our institutions are capable of generating their...
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