About We Make Our Future
We Make Our Future was a planetarium show developed by the Inspire
Sustainability team at UWE Bristol and outreach experts Explorer Dome. The
show celebrates the ingenuity of human engineering, and our potential to
tackle huge problems such as the Climate and Ecological Emergency. This
Ingenious grant had two aims; one was to train diverse engineers in
storytelling and presentation skills, and the other was to increase the
diversity of backgrounds and jobs showcased to children within the
sustainability solutions show.
Engaging the engineers
The project started with storytelling and presentation skills training for 29 engineers, of whom 68% were female and 36% from minority ethnic backgrounds. This training was run in collaboration with Explorer Dome, who provided their top tips for how to engage diverse audiences. It was designed not only to boost the engineers’ confidence but also to equip them with the skills to effectively communicate about their work and its relevance to young audiences.
The engineers provided positive feedback about the training and the project. Many of the comments indicated that the storytelling style of the training and interactive activities had worked well: “Very engaging and fun! Useful introduction to STEM outreach communication, and general skills required.” They also indicated that this variety of ideas was very useful as they developed a suite of options for future engagement situations.
Reaching diverse audiences
The heart of the project was its extended outreach, which included 77 shows presented to 2065 children from 17 schools in deprived areas. The response from these students was positive with 93% enjoying the show and 83% learning something new about engineering.
Another key aspect was the emphasis on green jobs and sustainability. Over 86% of the students said they found out how engineering can help the world and 77% expressed interest in finding out more about solutions to save the planet from climate change.
Teachers also noted a significant increase in their students’ knowledge of engineering. One teacher said: “They all felt very inspired and were still coming up with interesting ideas to save the world.” Another reflected: “we loved the presenters. They were so enthusiastic and clearly knew how to talk to children. It was relevant to Bristol, which made it incredibly engaging for them.”
Several teachers highlighted the importance of having diverse engineers displaying career pathways: “showing children people who look like them in those jobs” and appreciating the “exposure to a range of jobs and engineers. Girl in video was great.”
To find out more about this project, read our case study and hear more from the project team.
