Education & Outreach
Activities at fairs and events
Physics for everyone at fairs and events
IFAE develops a science outreach programme at fairs, festivals and public events, with the aim of bringing contemporary physics closer to society through participatory and accessible formats. Through activities designed for general and family audiences, the centre takes research beyond the classroom and the laboratory, fostering curiosity, dialogue and interest in science.
What activities does the programme include?
European Researchers’ Night
European Researchers’ Night is a European initiative that brings scientific research closer to the public through open, free and participatory activities. Every year, IFAE takes part in this event with proposals designed for general and family audiences, presenting some of the major challenges of contemporary physics in an accessible way.
In the 2025 edition, IFAE’s participation was structured around a broad programme of activities developed over the course of an entire week, including workshops, demonstrations and interactive proposals aimed at diverse audiences. The activities made it possible to explore physics from different perspectives, encouraging direct contact with researchers and offering spaces for experimentation and dialogue in open, public settings.
In this edition, IFAE also took part in joint activities developed together with the European consortium of the PICO Project , which made it possible to share materials, approaches and outreach proposals with other European research centres.
Other science outreach events
IFAE actively participates in major science outreach events such as the Barcelona Science Biennial and the Barcelona Science Festival, with activities aimed at general and family audiences.
At the 4th edition of the Biennal Ciutat i Ciència (2025) , held in different locations across the city, IFAE took part with a range of activities addressing some of the major challenges of current physics and its relationship with society.
- Cosmic Rays in the City
- Celluloid Multiverses: Quantum Physics in Three Films
- Quantum Computing: Reality or Hype? The Current and Realistic State of Quantum Technology
At the Festa de la Ciència , IFAE also presented interactive activities in the field of quantum computing, aimed at families and the general public, with the goal of making some of the concepts and applications of this emerging area of physics accessible.
For any questions, you can contact us by writing to comunicacio@ifae.es .
European collaboration in science outreach
The PICO project is developed in collaboration with a European consortium of scientific and outreach institutions, including the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (project coordinator), Ellinogermaniki Agogi, the National Observatory of Athens, the European Gravitational Observatory, the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Trust-IT Services, and the Institut de Física d’Altes Energies (IFAE). This collaboration makes it possible to design and share science outreach activities and to bring joint proposals to fairs and events in different European countries.
Bringing frontier physics closer to society
The main objective of the PICO project is to bring fundamental and frontier physics closer to the public, showing how advances in this field influence our understanding of the world and everyday life. Through participatory and accessible activities, the project aims to foster curiosity, critical thinking and interest in science, placing special emphasis on inclusion, diversity and gender equality, and promoting a closer and more dialogical relationship between science and society.
- People reached through science outreach events each year
- +1,000
- Years bringing physics to fairs and public events
- +8 years
- Public science events and festivals participated in every year
- 5
