I believe in inspiring the next generation of innovators. Giving them the passion and skills to look for solutions to the great issues of the 21st century. As a science graduate I have spent time working on societal challenges and I firmly believe that with a mixture of science, creativity and social reform we can affect the changes that need to happen. I am particularly interested in mitigating against climate change, population growth, mental health issues and social inequality. However, it will take multidisciplinary approaches and a re-training of the way we are currently taught to think about ourselves and the world.
I have finally found a project that fits with my idea of aspirational science, helping young people find wonder in the world of physics and chemistry and understanding how it fits with them finding solutions to the problems, danceroom Spectroscopy. The next generation need to understand that science is not just about learning facts and figures or right or wrong, it is about creating images of the world that we live in and understanding it through exploration and experimentation. danceroom Spectroscopy (dS) does this, it is a projection of the nano-world which humans can interact with. It is easier to see in pictures than describe so check out the website link above and it is ideal for me as it brings together my passion for performance and my experience in science business. I am working for dS as Education Producer, creating a resources that can go into schools, dS takes the nano-world out of textbooks so it exists all around us, enabling students to interact with, manipulate and understand atoms. It has huge potential for enhancing the understanding of abstract science in schools, often only accessible to a small group of pupils.
I think that projects that combine arts and sciences begin to change some of the prejudices and dangerous mindsets that exist about how the world “should” work.
I strongly believe that the way science is currently taught disengages a large number of potential innovators (despite knowing a lot of incredible science teachers). My personal experience is that it is built on black and white thinking and often filled with an arrogance which makes people not want to express themselves. A subset of research scientists understand the role of failure in the scientific process but the academic and science based business world are all too often full of people who are fixated by one-one-up-manship instead of multidisciplinary problem solving. I want the next generation to feel empowered to develop the knowledge and skills required to make an impact and to be confident to make themselves part of the solution.
