VOLCANOES’ NIGHT was a Marie Curie Sklodowska Researchers’ Night project series running from 2012 to 2015 under three consecutive contracts funded by the European Commission.
European Researchers’ Nights (ERNs) are a pan-European series of events funded by the EC, organized on the last Friday of every September since 2005. ERNs mobilize scientific, academic and research organizations with the aim of giving the public the opportunity to meet researchers in an informal setting. The overall objective of ERNs is to achieve better awareness among the general public concerning the importance of science in everyday life and to combat stereotypes about researchers. The longer-term strategic objective of ERNs is to encourage young people to embark on a scientific career.
The aim of VOLCANOES’ NIGHT was to use volcanoes as a background against which the role of geoscientists could be explained to the public. This FP7 and H2020 funded project series was exclusively dedicated to geoscience, and in this respect it stood out among all other ERN projects that are always more general in scope.
During its four years of EC funding, the geographical coverage of VOLCANOES’ NIGHT expanded substantially from a single location in 2012 (Fuencaliente, Spain) to a dozen locations in 2015, mobilising multiple scientific organisations, researchers, and public authorities for engagement with the public. The last EC-funded project, VOLCANOES’ NIGHT III, which was organised in 2014 and 2015, engaged approximately 21,000 visitors through its outreach activities, which included experiments, science cafés, volcano movies, My Day presentations, excursions, science workshops and more. VOLCANOES’ NIGHT I-II-III created the much needed links between the geoscientific community, the public and decision makers, which is now a good basis for the exploitation of results after the EC-funded period.
EC funding for VOLCANOES’ NIGHT ended on 1 December 2015. The project is currently in a 5-year exploitation phase, during which the aim of the Project Coordinator is to maintain information services, promote the organisation of similar events, and widely disseminate the scientific achievements of this project.
To safeguard the original non-commercial, non-partisan spirit of VOLCANOES’ NIGHT, the organisers are now converting the project into a flexible and inclusive scheme in which any organisation can participate. The aim is to encourage research teams, universities, municipalities, museums and geoscientists to join the initiative and organise their own VOLCANOES’ NIGHT on 29th of September 2017.
How to get involved in VOLCANOES’ NIGHT?
Download the 1-page Information Leaflet or go directly to Your Volcanoes’ Night for more details. Make sure you also check the Frequently Asked Questions section then get in touch with the Project Coordinator using the Contact Form of the project website or via direct e-mail: info@nochedevolcanes.es or ariadna.ortega@lapalmacentre.eu.
