The stall was called ‘Let’s Talk Vaccines’ and entailed a series of activities to help the public understand how vaccines work, both directly and indirectly, in preventing microbial transmission and serious disease. The aim was to encourage dialogue with community members who often don’t get to hear about research, especially involving vaccines. A range of activities for all ages were designed, includingmatching giant microbes to their real-life microscopic images, a herd immunity lucky dip and a true or false game to consolidate understanding. Activities were aimed at families, with easy to access information for all ages.
This stall was led by a Kaltun Duale, a Lead Technician in Bristol Vaccine Centre, alongside Senior Research Associate Claire Woodall and Research Technician Thomas Nyamunda, also from Bristol Vaccine Centre. We were fortunate to have further support from Festival of Nature Volunteers Josie and Patrick.
Reflecting on the day, Claire told us “This event was a fantastic opportunity to bring microbiology to the community, offering a great chance to inspire and engage children…and their parents loved it too!”.
Tom said, “The day was a lot of fun and it was great sharing scientific knowledge with the public, and also very important. Vaccination is something the public needs and it helps when we do these kinds of outreach events, it helps to build bridges and demystify public health and foster trust in the public. In addition, it can help children get interested in and curious about science”.
The day was a huge success with 182 attendees of all ages and backgrounds. We were able to gather some feedback from participants, and some of the younger participants drew some of the creatures that fascinated them most, including some excellent microbes!
Kaltun said, “This was a fantastic way to get involved in Public Engagement! We had a great time planning, organising and being at the stall on the day. I learnt a lot through the process and the success of the day was extremely rewarding. I honestly believe in making science more accessible to communities who may not otherwise get the opportunity to engage in scientific discussions in a comprehensible way. This event provided a safe space to do so for all ages.”
(Written by Kaltun Duale)