festival of learning | News & Events

Fancy going on a kitchen safari to see what bacteria lurk in your food? How about unleashing your inner monkey, uncovering the history that lies beneath Hengistbury Head, or finding out how best to market your business?

These are just some of the 150+ free events being held by Bournemouth University as part of its 2014 Festival of Learning.

It runs from Monday 9 to Sunday 15 June and is open to staff, students and members of the public – with events taking place at the university’s Talbot and Lansdowne campuses, and locations across Dorset.

Different events will run throughout the day and evening, and range from interactive workshops and hands-on taster sessions to presentations and seminars.

For the brave among you, there will even be a chance to try some unusual foodstuffs – including insects and super-hot chillis.

The Festival of Learning is now in its second year, and BU’s Vice-Chancellor Professor John Vinney hopes it will be even bigger and better than before.

“Last year we had over 4,000 local people joining us to find out more about our research and how it can impact their lives and the lives of those around the world,” he said.

“Whether you’re part of a business, interested in the latest technological developments, looking for something different to do with the family, or are simply inspired by learning new things, there’s something for everyone.”

The events focus around several exciting themes – including Food and Drink, Professional Development, and Secret Dorset – with activities looking at a range of diverse subjects, covering everything from health and nutrition to business accounting and finance, and the technology of tomorrow.

There are also live labs running on campus throughout the week, giving people the chance to experience first-hand the work and research taking place at the university – from testing to see if you are a super-recogniser to understanding the physical reactions people have playing video games.

With everything from children’s animation workshops to an introduction to the stock market on offer – there’s something for all ages and interests.

To book onto an event, or for more information, visit: www.bournemouth.ac.uk/fol or call 01202 962362.

You can also keep up with the Festival of Learning on Facebook and Twitter, and share your thoughts using #BUFest14.

Bournemouth University’s Festival of Learning was featured on the Katie Martin Show on BBC Radio Solent.

Rebecca Edwards, one of the Festival’s organisers, spoke on the programme telling listeners how to sign up and the sorts of events taking place during the Festival.

Dr Rebecca Edwards said, “The Festival of Learning is ten days where we are offering over 100 free to attend activities on all sorts of different topics. We have got everything from a workshop on social media for the terrified; we’ve also got a debate on how much intervention women should have in childbirth, we’ve got an interactive lecture on how to build the perfect sandcastle.”

Rebecca continued, “In terms of where the idea came from, they have been generated by colleagues from across Bournemouth University. We put a call out to all our academic colleagues and those working in professional services and said ‘we want to share all of the brilliant stuff you do with a much wider audience and people who are living locally, so what can you do as a part of the Festival of Learning?’ Our office was inundated with ideas for brilliant events, we have spent the last year or so pulling them all together into the programme that you can see now for the Festival of Learning.”

Talking to Katie Martin, Rebecca said, “Sometimes universities can feel quite imposing but I would say that everyone is welcome to these events. This is something I have talked to an awful lot of people about. We have been doing a lot of work across the area, in Poole High Street, handing out programmes and talking to people about the Festival and very much saying learning is for life and there is no barrier in coming to the institution. Within the Festival of Learning we have a number of events taking place outside of the university, for example the Lighthouse Theatre in Poole and also in Poole Park and a cinema in Wareham so not just staying in the University.

“If you want to bring the family along we’ve got events that are definitely events for that but also there are lots of things you can turn up to as an individual because you are interested in it. You will get a big friendly welcome from Bournemouth University when you sign up to one of our events.

“The Festival of Learning is a great opportunity to come along, to see what some of our facilities are like and, most importantly, learn more about what we are passionate about and meet some of the individuals that lecture on some of the various courses that we offer. As an institution we recognise that we need to be learning from the public around us all the time – it’s part of the reason we are throwing the doors open to people – we want them to say what we should be researching and get more knowledge on.”

You can listen to the programme again for the next seven days on the BBC Website.

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Something for everyone at BU’s Festival of Learning this June

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Festival of Learning features on BBC Radio Solent