On November 13, 14, and 15, the CEAB-CSIC will host open days. During these three days, scientific tours have been organized for students from local schools, and guided tours will be offered to the general public.
The Centre d’Estudis Avançats de Blanes (CEAB) is one of the research institutes of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) that opens its doors to commemorate the 24th edition of Science and Technology Week.
The laboratories and other CEAB-CSIC facilities will be open to visitors on November 13, 14, and 15. Researchers from the Centre will explain the research they conduct and how they carry it out.
Each morning will be reserved for local secondary and high school students. Through five thematic tours, students will discover the full process of scientific research and participate, like real scientists, in specific phases, such as sample analysis in the laboratories. The scientific tours, organized in small groups, are as follows:
– Coastal vegetation and storms (explores the challenges of extreme coastal phenomena, worsened by climate change. Using a wave simulator, students will observe the crucial role of vegetation, both in and out of the water, in coastal protection).
– How our daily activities affect river ecosystems (provides an overview of the research conducted by the fluvial ecology group in urban rivers, specifically focusing on the effect of wastewater treatment plant effluents on river health).
– Conservation of high-mountain lakes in the Pyrenees (explains the impacts of introduced species on high-mountain lakes and what can be done to restore these habitats to their natural state).
– Marine forests, what are they like? (This tour reveals the vast green areas under the sea: algae communities that are vital for marine life and the health of our planet).
– Mosquito Alert: how do we identify mosquitoes? (This tour introduces artificial intelligence tools, combined with human analysis by expert entomologists, to quickly verify alerts sent through the citizen science platform).
On Thursday and Friday afternoon, from 7 pm to 8:30 pm, the Centre will open to the general public. There will be guided tours of all the facilities, also led by CEAB-CSIC staff. The tours will explain how a scientific research institute operates, the main research lines currently being developed at CEAB-CSIC, and how citizens can contribute to shared goals like advancing knowledge and protecting nature.
The goal of the open doors event and the other activities organized by research centers for Science Week is to bring scientific research closer to the public.
Gemma Agell, CEAB-CSIC’s Head of Scientific Outreach and Culture, explains that “open doors events help break down barriers; we show that the work of scientists, as well as that of all research support staff, is a regular job, yet one that is exciting due to the important contributions it can make to society. It’s motivating to see students discover a professional path, to see that science or technology really can be for them. These days also allow us to connect with locals, with people who, although nearby, sometimes feel distant because they don’t know what we do here or what it’s for.”
