A European Researchers' Night project obtains "outstanding collaboration" award

EXPLORATHON, a European Researchers' Night 2014-2015 project, was last month granted the ARMA award in the category of "outstanding collaboration". The scientific events organised by the universities of Aberdeen, Glasgow, St. Andrews, Strathclyde and Edinburgh managed to engage 17,000 citizens in Scotland. The ARMA Awards acknowledge excellent work in the field of research.

The prize was in recognition of the project's "confidence-building, networking, communication skills, evaluation and event planning", as well as the scale of the engagement achieved. Over 17,000 citizens across Scotland took part in the scientific activities organised by the five universities involved in the project: Aberdeen, Glasgow, St. Andrews, Strathclyde and Edinburgh.

The ARMA Awards also highlighted the context in which the project took place: the "world's largest single knowledge exchange celebration", in reference to the European Researchers' Night, funded under the EU i Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA).

Aberdeen university's team (left) and Kenneth Skeldon and Jenifer Scott, respectively Head and development coordinator of the Public Engagement Unit at the University of Abeerden, during the ceremony on 7 June in Birmingham. / Pictures provided by the University of Aberdeen and ARMA Awards.

This year EXPLORATHON will be back on 30 September, when the European Researchers' Night will be celebrated simultaneously in over 250 cities in the EU and in neighbouring countries.