Cool chemistry at the seaside
With financial support from the Royal Society of Chemistry Outreach Fund, volunteers in Ramsgate transformed an empty town-centre shop into a makeshift theatre in November, delivering free chemistry demonstrations to anyone who fancied coming in. The team were awarded £2,000 in August for their proposal to bring an enriching educational opportunity to the heart of a community that can face significant barriers to accessing learning opportunities.
The organisers teamed up with the University of Kent Physical Sciences Outreach Team, which – led by Ollie Brown – delivered 12 chemistry demonstrations over a two day period. They used audience participation to explain core chemistry concepts such as liquids, solids and gases, and brought the talk to life by demonstrating the effects of liquid nitrogen on bananas, balloons and bouquets of flowers.
Capturing people's imagination
Lead organiser Xanthe Pitt explained why she applied to the Outreach Fund: “We really wanted to bring something different to Ramsgate town centre. We wanted to make science accessible, ignite an interest in it and inspire people to learn more. By making the shop stand out from the usual high street offer, we wanted to entice members of the public, young and old.
“We tried to ensure that the event wasn’t only perceived as being aimed at those with children by organising part of it during the working-week. It was clear that a number of adults were initially hesitant to take part, but once inside, we were able to show them some practical applications of chemistry and demonstrate that anyone can become a scientist. We are delighted that nearly everyone who completed our feedback said that they had learned something new and, more importantly, that they wanted to learn more!”
Fund your chemistry outreach work
The Royal Society of Chemistry Outreach Fund provides financial support to individuals and organisations in order to enable them to run chemistry-based events and activities for public audiences. Through the fund we can support our members and other advocates to engage with different audiences, and provide people with an entry point into the chemical sciences.
