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Briain Kelly, 13 Nov
The annual Galway Science and Technology Festival Exhibition Day drew huge
crowds this month, with over 23,000 people of all ages coming to marvel at
what was on display.
Last Sunday’s exhibition saw crowds thrilled by the range of activities,
including the Medtronic Junior Hospital, the ever-popular Teddy Bear
Hospital, exotic animals with The Bug Doctor plus primary and secondary
school exhibition stands.
Festival Manager Anne Murray was thrilled with the number of people who
engaged with the events which were held on the University of Galway
campus.
“It is wonderful to see such an amazing turnout each year. For many
families, our Exhibition Day is the absolute highlight of their year,
encouraging young people to get more involved with STEM subjects in
schools and to be more curious about exploring the world around us.”
The event celebrates the beginning of the annual national Science Week
celebrations with Galway’s Exhibition Day being the largest event in the
country.
The event is free to attend and includes a range of STEM demonstrations,
maths buskers, interactive workshops and innovative displays, encouraging
scientists of the future to follow their curiosity about the world around
them and pursue careers in STEM.
Aurora Kieda, 8, Ballyglunin Tuam with shark jaws at the Marine Institute
stand. Photo: Andrew Downes, xposure,
With the support of sponsors and partners, including main sponsor
Medtronic, this popular family event brings a collaboration of local
industry, educators, support agencies and Science Foundation Ireland.
Celebrating 26 years of STEM Education, the Exhibition was the opening
event for the two week annual Galway Science and Technology Festival,
which runs right through the 29th of November.
The Festival showcases Galway as the MedTech capital of Europe and a
growing IT Hub, bringing science and technology to over 35,000 students in
schools across Galway city and county.
This year there will be over 200 STEM demonstrations, shows and workshops
in 140 primary schools and 40 post-primary schools across the city and
county.
Dylan Shine, 11, Claregalway National School. Photo: Andrew Downes,
xposure,
Awards and Prizes
More than 400 short science films were entered into the the ReelLIFE
Science competition by more than 3,000 young science enthusiasts.
Winning videos were selected by a panel of guest judges including
aeronautical engineer and author Dr Norah Patten; ‘Superhero Scientist’
and author Dr. Barry Fitzgerald; and the 2022 BT Young Scientist and
Technology Exhibition winners, Aditya Kumar and Aditya Joshi from Synge
Street CBS in Dublin.
The fantastic school exhibits are always a highlight of the Exhibition,
where schools get to demonstrate their school projects to the public,
learning to become science communicators from a young age. The winners of
this year’s School Exhibits were in the secondary school category,
Galway Science and Technology Person of the Year 2023
The 2023 Galway Science & Technology Person of the Year Award was
presented to Geraldine Whelan, Coolarne National School by Brendan Smith
of Insight and University of Galway.
Geraldine Whelan, who is deputy principal of St. Vincent’s National School
Coolarne has ensured that her school has been a permanent part of the
Sunday Fair for over a decade.
The school has always had a fantastic range of hands-on science activities
on show at their stand every year with a large number of pupils
participating.
In fact the number of children participating on a rota basis at the
Coolarne stand is probably the highest of any Galway school exhibiting at
the annual Exhibition Day.
The Festival is a very unique event for both families and the public and
strives to make a real difference to young people as they continue their
studies often making the STEM subjects an easy choice for their third
level studies.
The Galway Science and Technology Committee would like to express great
gratitude to all the volunteers from companies, colleges, schools and the
public who give their time so generously and participate both during the
Festival and at the Exhibition.