Fête de la science 2020: good results despite the health crisis

The aim of the Fête de la Science is to raise awareness in the general public about scientific challenges and share the curiosity for sciences, techniques and innovations, in the form of “a large number of free of charge, creative and fun scientific entertainments, exhibitions, debates and initiatives”. In 2020, the Fête de la Science was still held, and over all events organised during these days, whether onsite, remotely of hybrid, the services of the ministry registered a total attendance of 530,000 visitors.

A revamped event

As the Keynote published by the French ministry in charge of research shows, for about 30 years, thousands of events have been organised by the ministry with the contribution of thousands of project leaders for this annual party. More precisely, these events are “coordinated at national, regional and local scales”. They are then implemented “in partnership with 3,000 scientific, cultural and institutional structures”, including research organisations, educational institutions, local authorities, companies, museums and media libraries, not to mention the “mobilisation of more than 10,000 actors and volunteers”.

For the 2020 edition, exactly 1,757 events were organised, compared to 3,473 in 2019. Nevertheless, “in the particular context of the health crisis, this 29th edition reinvented itself through new forms of mediation and proposed, for the first time, alongside the thousands of events organised in the field, a digital programme for the general public”.

In detail, the largest number of events was organised in the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region (338), followed by Occitanie (232) and Île-de-France (180) regions. It should also be noted that 11 scientific events were organised internationally, in Ireland, Romania, Serbia, China and the United Arab Emirates.

An indispensable bond of trust

“Join us for the 30 years of the Fête de la Science this autumn!”. This is the invite already launched by the information website of the French government to inform that in 2021, the Fête de la Science will celebrate 30 years. As the ministry of research states, the anniversary edition will be held from October 1st to 11 in Metropolitan France and New Caledonia, and from November 5 to 22 in Corsica, overseas territories and internationally.

According to the organisers, the Fête de la Science is even more important this since “the health crisis showed over the last months the key role of science in the analyse, comprehension and efficient action in the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic”. So the 2021 edition of the Fête de la Science seems to be “more than ever a critical event to bring together science and society, and develop an indispensable bond of trust”.

For the 30th anniversary, the Fête de la Science will be placed under the sign of “the emotion of discovery”. It should indeed bring together “all lovers of knowledge around the iconic expression Eureka!” The ministry believes that the year 2021 will be the right occasion for researchers to “share with the public their daily lives, their scientific approach, their battles and their Eureka! moments.”