Blind artist creates quantum exhibition; deaf kids camp at nuclear reactor; dancers with disability pollinate science & inclusion
National Science Week disability and inclusion stories up for grabs now around Australia
- Legally blind artist drives multisensory Quantum Year exhibition – multi-state (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane)
- Deaf kids camp at nuclear reactor – Sydney, NSW
- Dancers with disability pollinate science and inclusion – Canberra, ACT
- Rainbow roses: people with intellectual and cognitive disabilities discover explosive strength of capillary pressure – Farrer, ACT
- 50 ways to die in space: sensory friendly and Auslan interpreted sessions with astrophysicist and children’s author – Brisbane, QLD
More on these below and visit ScienceWeek.net.au/events to find more stories in your area.
Individual event details and media contacts
Legally blind artist and musician collaborate in multisensory science exhibition to celebrate Quantum Year – Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane
‘A Different Light: Multisensory Science Books of X-Ray Crystallography’ touring exhibition builds on the work of the Monash Sensory Science initiative and will be delivered through partnerships with Vision Australia (VIC), Next Sense (NSW), Braille House (QLD) and other key educational organisations.
Designed by legally blind artist Dr Erica Tandori, from Monash University’s Rossjohn Laboratory, and designer/musician Dr Stu Favilla, from Swinburne University of Technology, it explores hidden atomic structures and protein formations revealed through X-ray crystallography in a series of 10 multisensory science books.
Showcasing accessible and inclusive science during Quantum Year, the exhibition enables blind, low vision and diverse needs (BLVDN) audiences to connect with cutting-edge Australian science and scientists (past and present) – including Nobel Prize winners Henry and Lawrence Bragg, the Australian father-and-son duo who pioneered X-ray crystallography.
It also features interactive mock-ups of the Braggs’ X-ray crystallography machines from the early 20th Century, image and data sonification, science inspired electronic music, and tactile artworks and graphics that represent atomic structures, diffraction patters and protein formations.
Deaf kids camp at nuclear reactor – Lucas Heights, Sydney
Nuclear scientists and deaf educators unpack the science behind our universe – at the atomic level – in a three-day camp on the site of Australia’s only nuclear reactor, OPAL.
Designed for deaf and hard-of-hearing youth (aged 12 to 17), the initiative is organised by Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) in partnership with Deaf Youth Australia.
Located at ANSTO’s Lucas Heights campus, activities cover site tours; workshops on everything from atoms and elements to microscopy and radioactivity; 3D printing and robotics demonstrations; and bushwalking and outdoor games.
The OPAL reactor produces radiopharmaceuticals for nuclear medicine and neutron beams for research. It also supplies more than half the global demand for irradiated silicon used in electronics and green technologies.
Thursday 7 August – Saturday 9 August: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/deaf-youth-science-camp/lucas-heights/
Deaf educators are available for media interviews with an Auslan interpreter present. To ensure enough time to book an interpreter, please arrange media interviews with extra notice (one week if possible).
Dancers with disability pollinate science and inclusion – Canberra, ACT
Explore the importance of bees for ecology, biodiversity and our food train through ‘BuzzACT’, a dance-and-science show for children.
Canberra’s inclusive dance performance group, The Chamaeleon Collective, comprises 70% of artists living with disability, chronic illness and/or PTSD.
Launched in 2020, The Chamaeleon Collective, is part of The Stellar Company, founded by dance artist/choreographer/producer, Liz Lea. The initiative provides professional mentoring and career pathways for emerging artists with and without disability.
Sunday 10 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/buzzz-act-2/gungahlin/
Sunday 17 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/buzzz-act/majura-park/
Liz Lea is available for media interviews.
Rainbow roses for people with disability – Farrer, ACT
People with disabilities are making rainbow roses to learn about the explosive strength of capillary pressure. The wider community in Canberra are invited to do the same.
Gayana, a 26-year-old woman with Down syndrome who opened her own flower shop, is co-presenting these workshops accessible to people with intellectual and cognitive disabilities.
Monday 11 – Friday 15 August. Event details: https://www.scienceweek.net.au/event/rainbow-roses-science-and-disabilty-empowerment/farrer
50 ways to die in space – Brisbane, QLD
Space: the final frontier. Beautiful. Intriguing. Mysterious. But if you go there, YOU WILL DIE!
Astrophysicist Dr Eileen O’Hely writes about the physics and physiology of existing – and ceasing to exist – in deep space. The author of children’s graphic novel 50 Ways to Die in Space will explore the topic with illustrator Nico O’Sullivan, including dedicated Auslan interpreted and sensory friendly sessions
Participants can also design and launch a paper rocket.
Saturday 16 August.
Auslan interpreted: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/auslan-interpreted-50-ways-to-die-in-space-air-rocket-workshop/st-lucia/
Sensory friendly: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/sensory-friendly-50-ways-to-die-in-space-air-rocket-workshop/st-lucia/
Meet roving dinosaurs, dig for fossils and marvel at Land and Sky Country – Bendigo, VIC
‘Jurassic Wonders: From Earth to Sky’ celebrates First Nations Knowledge, palaeontology and astronomy by teaching children the importance of cross-cultural understanding and engagement to understand the Universe. The event includes Auslan interpretation for children with low or no hearing.
Designed for children aged 3 to 11, the event at Bendigo’s Discovery Science and Technology Centre features ‘life-sized roving dinosaurs that stomp, roar and interact with the crowd’, cultural storytelling and a planetarium show focused on Indigenous archaeology.
Saturday 16 August. Event details: www.scienceweek.net.au/event/jurassic-wonders/bendigo/
About National Science Week
National Science Week is Australia’s annual opportunity to meet scientists, discuss hot topics, do science and celebrate its cultural and economic impact on society – from art to astrophysics, chemistry to climate change, and forensics to future food.
First held in 1997, National Science Week has become one of Australia’s largest festivals. Last year about 3 million people participated in more than 2,000 events and activities.
The festival is proudly supported by the Australian Government, CSIRO, the Australian Science Teachers Association, and the ABC.
In 2025 it runs from Saturday 9 to Sunday 17 August. Event details can be found at www.scienceweek.net.au.
