Ten scientific workshops will fill Tortosa’s Town Hall Square with science activities on Friday, 4 October

The Terres de l’Ebre Campus of the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) is joining the European Researchers’ Night with a science workshop fair at Tortosa’s Town Hall Square. This initiative began in the previous edition and is part of a major scientific outreach event organized by the URV’s Science Communication Unit. The event will take place on Friday, 4 October, from 4:30 PM to 9:00 PM, and will feature participation from various researchers of the URV.

Attendees will enjoy hands-on scientific workshops covering diverse fields of knowledge, with experimental activities designed to make science accessible and enjoyable. Children participating in the workshops will receive a “science passport” which they can stamp upon completing each activity. Once completed, they will earn a final prize. This initiative aims to ignite young people’s curiosity about science through direct experimentation.

One of the standout activities is a workshop on protohistoric pottery reconstruction, where participants can recreate ancient pieces and learn archaeological restoration techniques. Another workshop will feature a simulation of a smart city using Urbots, demonstrating how modern cities use automated systems and innovative technologies. A separate session will teach basic life support techniques, including first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Additionally, another area will explore new technologies applied to sports performance, showcasing how these innovations optimize both health and athletic performance.

To complement the main event, educational outreach activities have also been organized in local schools, including the Ferreries Primary School in Tortosa and the Soriano Montagut Primary School in Amposta, to bring science closer to young students.

European Researchers’ Night in Tarragona

The European Researchers’ Night celebrates its seventh edition at the URV this year with a record number of activities. The event will feature around 100 activities across Tarragona, catering to various audiences, and involving more than 300 researchers from the URV and research centres in the CERCA network, such as the Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC), the Catalan Institute for Chemical Research (ICIQ), the Pere Virgili Institute for Health Research (IISPV), and the Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES). The initiative is funded by the European Union.

The full programme for the European Researchers’ Night was announced this morning at the URV’s Office of the Rector, with the participation of the Rector, Josep Pallarès; Tarragona City Councillor for Finance, Internal Services, Technology, and Education, Isabel Mascaró; and Sonia Fernández Veledo, researcher and advisory member of the board of the IISPV.

In Tarragona, the event will take place on September 27 and 28 in the Plaça Corsini, with a science workshop fair open to the public. Workshops will run on Friday from 4:30 PM to 9:00 PM and on Saturday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, offering experimental activities from various scientific disciplines. For more information, you can check the full schedule.

A Growing and Consolidated Initiative

The European Researchers’ Night is a public scientific outreach event held simultaneously in 300 cities across 30 countries every year. Since 2018, the URV has organized the event in Tarragona, which has grown steadily over the past seven years. Last year’s edition attracted thousands of participants across the region. The goal is to bring research and researchers closer to audiences of all ages and to showcase innovation and discovery in an accessible and engaging manner.

The European Researchers’ Night is made possible through co-funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme, as well as the support of a consortium coordinated by the University of Girona, alongside other universities and public institutions in Catalonia. In Tortosa, the event is supported by Tarragona Provincial Council, the Tortosa Town Council, and IDECE.