The diverse range of university activities, largely led by students and based on their research, includes an exhibit by PhD researcher Chantel Summerfield whose work looking at arborglyphs – carvings made by soldiers during the war – has enabled her to uncover fascinating wartime stories from around the world. Visitors are urged to try their hand at ‘tree graffiti’ by creating their own carving.
Heritage closer to home will be examined through a display of paintings and illustrations which show Bristol’s evolving landscape through the years, thanks to a collaboration between M Shed, Bristol Museum and historians from the University.
Young scientists, from an exhibit named ‘Collective Complexity’, will be involving visitors to the Festival in a unique experiment which will show how quickly disease can spread, using stickers to symbolise germs. A fellow exhibit, also within the University of Bristol tent, will counteract this by issuing vaccination and cure stickers to give a visual illustration of disease control.
Rebecca Jones, from the University of Bristol’s Centre for Public Engagement, said: “The Festival of Nature is a great way to engage with people of all ages and it’s the ideal opportunity to showcase the vast range of research going on here at the University. We have nine diverse exhibits which promise to give visitors a unique insight into the world around them – from the importance of seeds to how bees collect nectar and how our brains are more sophisticated than the most complex computers in the world.
“Our tent was ranked the second best by visitors to last year’s Festival so we’re hoping to have another successful year. We’re next to the BBC Natural History Unit’s tent in Millennium Square so should be easy to find.”
Pupils from across the South West will enjoy a special day just for schools on Friday [15 June], then the public are welcome between 10am and 6pm on Saturday and from 11am to 6pm on Sunday.
The Festival is now in its ninth year and has attracted tens of thousands of people since it began, helping to ensure Bristol’s worldwide reputation for natural history communication.
The Festival was named ‘Tourism Event of the Year 2011’ in the Bristol Tourism and Hospitality Industry Awards 2011, and was awarded Bronze in the Tourism Event of the Year category at the South West Tourism Excellence Awards 2011-2012.
For further information, please see the Festival of Nature website: www.festivalofnature.org