Ultimo Science Festival
Public program, developed 2005-2008, and as an annual event through 2006-2008 and ongoing
Jesse initiated the partnership between four major organisations which jointly present the largest science festival in Sydney during National Science Week. The ABC Sydney Headquarters, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney Institute of TAFE and the Powerhouse Museum are all neighbours along Harris Street in the inner Sydney suburb of Ultimo. Key science communicators in these organisations saw the value of joining forces to get a bigger result from their individual science week activities. Jesse facilitated team meetings, was the treasurer for the festival, wrote or co-wrote the grant applications which achieved support from three levels of government and attracted corporate sponsorships. He also curated
science-art displays for the festival and developed or assisted with
some of the public programs. The festival grew from 10,000 to 12,000
attendances in its first three years. replica wathces
Image reproduced courtesy of the Powerhouse Museum,
Sydney. Photo: Jean-Francois Lanzarone
View of the Powerhouse Museum’s steam engine, Loco 3830, with heritage carriages and a new diesel electric train for the NSW rail system. These trains were on public display behind the ABC and UTS buildings (in the Ultimo Pedestrian Network) as part of the Ultimo Science Festival 2006. Around 4,000 people visited the trains.
Image
reproduced courtesy of the Ultimo Science Festival. Photo: Jayne Ion
Jesse developed and coordinated Scienteering, a three day event
spread over three venues. It presented an entertaining series of
problem solving activities and questions based on science and
technology. Jesse structured the event to encourage group and family
participation and to have the public talk with scientists on the
street. The quiz activities conveyed how science is involved in
health, the environment, innovation and everyday life. People needed
to answer only 10 of 30 questions but, with the offer of prizes for
high scores, many of the more than 800 participants answered all the
questions. Jesse arranged for eight external organisations and three
from USF partners to host the eleven quiz stands. He hired staff and
organised volunteers for the scoring-prize stand and got thousands
of prizes donated from many sources. This was the busy scene at the
Mathematical Association of NSW stand in the Powerhouse Museum.
Photo: Jesse Shore
Jesse curated four art-science themed displays to go into the TAFE’s Muse gallery for Ultimo Science Festival 2008. One of the exhibitions was a touring show, Parasites in focus, which consisted of uncomfortably eye-catching microphotographs of parasites with accompanying descriptions. Jesse worked with University of Technology Sydney academics to arrange the well attended Parasites workshop school program held in the gallery to support this display.
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