THE ANNUAL Malvern Festival of Innovation returns today to help engage and inspire people across the town.
The event runs at different occasions until Saturday, October 8, across different locations in Great Malvern and will cover topics including climate change, fusion energy, Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM).
This year’s programme includes an evening session tonight (Tuesday) discussing the Climate Emergency, with presentations offering insights about what we as individuals and small businesses can do to have an impact on this serious and growing issue.
A new book about the festival will be launched during tomorrow evening (Wednesday, October 5) at the Wyche Innovation Centre and will include an opportunity to network with those who have supported the festival over the years.
On Thursday (October 6), Malvern Hills Science Park opens its doors with a Tech Day exhibition and talks to showcase some of the technology-focused businesses based on site and elsewhere in and around Malvern.
The morning will be aimed at school students in their final years as they think about STEM careers whilst the afternoon will be open to business professionals and university students looking to collaborate and find out more about these exciting tech ventures on our doorstep. The day will be followed by a Formal Dinner in Malvern College.
On Friday evening, the popular and fun Science and Technology Comedy Night returns, this year in the Malvern Cube.
And on Saturday, the Family Day will be held in Malvern Library, giving an opportunity for younger children and their parents or grandparents to engage with STEM organisations to try out some hands-on experiments and investigations.
The mini-exhibition is free for all to attend, with a ticketed talk during the morning on fusion energy given by popular science communicator Leah Morgan.
This year, festival founder Dr Adrian Burden will be launching his new book titled ‘Inspiring outside the box: the ten-year backstory to the Malvern Festival of Innovation’.
Adrian said: “With this being our 11th year of the festival, I felt it would be interesting to write about the previous ten editions, looking back at the highlights and recording some of the content we featured along the way.
“We’ve put on a variety of sub-events for schools, businesses and members of the public, including the sister event Malvern Science in the Park, and so it seemed fitting to acknowledge many of the people and organisations that helped, participated in, and supported the festival over the last decade.”
Coun Daniel Walton, Portfolio Holder for Tourism and Economic Development at Malvern Hills District Council, said: “This popular event has something to offer for people of all ages, it is also such a great opportunity for the next generation of budding scientists and entrepreneurs to gain knowledge on important issues, as well as learn new skills.”
Visit www.festival-innovation.com for more information on the Malvern Festival of Innovation.
