SHAring Researchers’ Passion for Enhanced Roadmaps - The European Researchers’ Night in Italy 2022-2023

Project Information

SHARPER

Grant agreement ID: 101061553

DOI

10.3030/101061553

Project closed

EC signature date 28 April 2022

Start date 1 April 2022

End date 31 January 2024

Funded under

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 982 000,00

Coordinated by

PSIQUADRO SOCIETA' COOPERATIVA - IMPRESA SOCIALE
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SHARPER (SHAring Researchers’ Passion for Enhanced Roadmaps - The European Researchers’ Night in Italy 2022-2023)

Reporting period: 2023-02-01 to 2024-01-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

SHARPER 2022/2023 project is the European researchers’ night in 14 Italian cities (Ancona, Cagliari, Camerino, Catania, Genova, L'Aquila, Macerata, Nuoro, Palermo, Pavia, Perugia, Sassari, Terni and Trieste), and it is taking place as part of the global cultural effort to enhance the dialogue between citizens and researchers. Through a diverse set of engagement strategies and communication formats, citizens of all ages have been meeting researchers from different fields, discovering the strong connection between their daily job and society at large. Within this context a new effort was developed to enhance the involvement of students and teachers with a specific set of programs developed all year round in schools of all Italy, namely the program “Researchers at school”.
The main SHARPER’s objective can be summarized as follows.
• to support students to better understand the researchers’ world and to encourage them to enter researcher careers and play a role in shaping the future;
• to provide teachers with effective tools to foster the dialogue between researchers and young generations;
• to motivate young students to enter researcher careers and play a role in shaping the future;
• to encourage children to discover researchers as role models because they are passionate and knowledgeable
• to convey the message that researchers are passionate persons who have a key role in tackling global challenges starting from the more urgent ones such as the climate change impact and the global sanitary emergencies
• to encourage strong collaborations between researchers and citizens aiming at knowledge-based innovation
• to create social inclusion within the research process overcoming different social divides;
• to use researchers’ emotions and enthusiasm to make research accessible and comprehensible to all;
• to develop a national community of researchers who are also excellent communicators and connected within Europe with other researcher communicators.The expected qualitative impact of the project is to reinforce the collaboration among all the actors involved to improve the citizens’ engagement with researchers.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

SHARPER 2022 edition represented a new beginning after the pandemic. Although during 2020 and 2021 the consortium coordinated by Psiquadro succeeded to accomplish the missions set despite the limitations imposed by the pandemic, in 2022 it was possible to regain the physical dimension of the events reinforced by the digital approaches adopted and perfected during the previous two years.
The first period of the project was used to develop in parallel two programs: (a) the joint programs such as the new version of the online marathon and the common projects addressed to schools (b) the local programs of pre-events, events during the night and events for schools. The SHARPER network expanded also including some villages and towns connected with the main 14 centers for a total of 20 cities. This territorial expansion was indeed the first achievement of the project.
Moreover, a set of 105 venues were selected by the Sharper cities. As planned in the original project a combination of onsite, online only, and blended activities (onsite activities live-streamed online and online dialogues among researchers based in different labs and venues all over Italy and all over the world) were developed during the Night. All the 14 cities adopted this approach that allowed to produce and offer to a wide audience not only the opportunity to take part to a wide range of actions located in their cities or in other places around Italy and in other countries in connection with researchers acting around the globe. For the first time a common challenge was faced due to bad weather conditions that obliged many cities to move activities from outdoor venues to indoor places taking this decision during the week of the Night based on weather forecast. The Sharper 2022 programme include 1007 actions including pre-event, that were organized during the summer and the main events on the 30th of September 2022 and in the following days of the weekend. The activities for schools started in September and in the middle of the school year 2022/2023 the results were excellent: almost 10.000 students through national activities and local activities for schools.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The Sharper 2022 has stimulated a great mobilization in the cities through a constant dialogue between the various members of the consortium, the city programs have been revised and make appropriate corrections in the type and manner of carrying out the activities enhancing the results of the evaluations carried out in recent years. The programs are constantly updated maintaining the most effective formats that over time have given the best results. The activities with schools have been more calibrated trying to identify topics of interest that were developed all year round. The participant observations highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of the activities. As in the past year, the researchers have given their contribution demonstrating creativity, preparation, and capacity for involvement. The most difficult formats to follow remain the seminars and therefore these must be carefully prepared by identifying the best methods of communication and the appropriate tools. Considering possible distortions in data collection, it should be noted that in the 2022 edition a considerable number of questionnaires completed by the students have been collected. In a more formal context, it was more appropriate to use this type of investigation technique. The survey carried out with ex-ante questionnaires highlighted very high average values of public satisfaction and confirmed the trust that Italians normally have in scientific institutions and researchers. The data are confirmed by the considerable appreciation of public institutions among which the European Union stands. To conclude, some elements of reflection can be proposed to improve the next editions of the European Researchers' Night: (a) the great variety of formats proposed is undoubtedly a strong point of Shaper, able to involve a diverse audience. However, a greater effort must be made in the training of researchers to put them in a position to better interpret their role in different contexts, especially in informal context where a great deal of preparation in translating content into credible and effective activities is needed. As far as the organization is concerned, efforts must be intensified to find adequate spaces, establish implementation times and methods of communication that are effectively suitable for different audiences. It will be of particular importance to try to reach an audience of people not always of medium high cultural level.

Sharper - Notte Europea dei Ricercatori - 2022