21-03-2025
Science Festival works to reach youth, adults wary of the subject
Atlanta Science Festival organizers and advocates hope its annual series of events will help both kids and adults see the subject as an engaging part of everyday life.
Why it matters: With the recent federal funding cuts and layoffs affecting agencies like the National Science Foundation, NASA, NOAA and the National Institutes of Health, the festival continues its mission to make science more accessible, especially to those who feel disconnected from it.
Zoom in: Science ATL 's two-week run of events, which is underway now and runs through Saturday, attracts about 50,000 attendees, said co-founder Meisa Salaita.
Among the 140+ events are hands-on activities, nature walks and sessions that explore topics like the science behind brewing the perfect cup of coffee.
"We really like to have diversity because everybody has different interests, and we want to find ways to connect to everybody's interests," said Salaita, who's also the co-founder of Science ATL.
What they're saying: Salaita, who has a Ph.D. in chemistry, said learning science in a classroom can sometimes "take away that idea of wonder and the sparking of curiosity," so the festival is a way to introduce the subject in a more engaging way.
"I wanted to find a way to help people connect to the beauty that I saw in chemistry specifically and science in general," she said.
Zoom in: Despite changes at the federal level, Salaita said the Atlanta Science Festival is still committed to making sure youth and adults who are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields have access to learning opportunities.
This can include bringing events to their communities and hosting events led by women scientists and scientists of color to show that there are people like them who are "doing amazing things in scientific research, in technology and as engineers," Salaita said.
The West Atlanta Watershed Alliance is among several local organizations that are festival mainstays.
The nonprofit, which advocates for the preservation of natural resources in Black communities in northwest and southwest Atlanta, also focuses on environmental education, stewardship and justice, said Chanté Lively, WAWA's environmental education manager.
The bottom line: Quanda Spencer, environmental scientist and volunteer services coordinator with WAWA, said the nonprofit's work with the Atlanta Science Festival is a "prime example of making science tangible, especially for communities that look like us."
"It allows individuals to reimagine science from a personal perspective. It changes the notion of what we were taught in school: science is this and only this."
