Inspiring Climate Solutions Hands-On

Addressing Climate change is one of the biggest challenges we face today, and science centres are in a unique position to play a key role in addressing it. But are they?

The ‘Energy House’, looking at energy use in the home and how solar and wind energy can be a viable energy source, designed and built whilst I was at Science Projects.

An understanding of climate issues and problems is undoubtedly important. Schools, traditional media, and the vast resources of the internet already offer explanations that are arguably clearer than those found in exhibitions. Science centres however, are uniquely positioned to go beyond explanation alone - they have the potential to encourage and inspire creative thinking and problem-solving.

By offering open-ended activities with creative exhibits, the field could nurture the problem solvers of the future. Inspire today’s visitors to seek answers tomorrow in innovation, science and technology to tackle the challenges ahead.

So how do we do this?

We focus less on different ways of telling facts and strive to develop exhibits that go beyond a “yes or no” outcome. We create exhibits that captivate visitors, discover through ‘doing’ and look for new possibilities. We give them the confidence to experiment and challenge them to think differently. We consider how we might spark the curiosity of a child, planting a seed for creative problem solving.

It’s not an easy task, but I feel that over the 35 years I have been designing and building exhibits, the field has become more about teaching than inspiring. About the presentation of fact over exploration, discovery and phenomena.

If ever the world needed creative thinking to answer its problems, it is now, and I believe science centres are where this thinking can flourish.