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Press release

Brussels, 25 September 2014

Fly me to the moon: 300 cities set for European Researchers’ Night

Destination moon – commencing countdown, engines on! If you have ever wondered what it’s like to be a space astronaut or a forensic scientist helping to crack a murder mystery, then don’t miss the annual European Researchers’ Night tomorrow (26 September). Research boffins will be sharing their passion for science with the public in over 300 cities and 29 countries. Visitors can experience a myriad of activities from a simulated rocket flight in Rome, to learning how to build a skateboard on a computer (Poznan) or helping solve a murder (Bucharest). Behind-the-scenes visits to labs which are normally closed to the public, hands-on experiments, international link-ups between different European events, flashmobs, quizzes and competitions are also on the agenda (see highlights below). The aim of European Researchers’ Night is to promote science and encourage young people to embrace a career in research.

“Europe needs to train an extra one million researchers by 2020 if it is to maintain its reputation for excellence and to achieve its target of investing 3% of EU GDP on R&D. European Researchers’ Night is a unique event to promote research careers. It is a win-win exercise in which the public learn about what researchers really do and why it matters for our daily life,” said Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth.

In 2013, nearly 1.3 million people of all ages participated in European Researchers’ Night. This year the initiative has received €8 million in support from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions, part of the EU research programme Horizon 2020.

Careers in research embrace many different fields. For example, youngsters taking part in tomorrow’s events will have the chance to sample life as a chemist, archaeologist or engineer. They will have the opportunity to carry out experiments under safe conditions and to try out high-tech equipment from labs. Discover the event closest to you here.

Background

European Researchers’ Night is a Europe-wide initiative which takes place on the last Friday night of September every year. It was launched in 2005 in 20 cities in 15 countries, and has grown fast since then.

The events are selected through open and transparent competition following a public call for bids.

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions (MSCA) provide international excellent research career development opportunities and training to talented researchers. The MSCA will award a total of €6.16 billion in grants over the next seven years (2014-2020), an increase of 30% on previous levels, with 65 000 researchers set to benefit. The Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions are managed by the Research Executive Agency of the European Commission.