The British Council, in partnership with Jive Media Africa and the South Africa Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA), invite young professionals and enthusiastic researchers in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics to sign up for FameLab 2016.
FameLab is an international competition searching for 21 to 35 year olds working in or studying technology, engineering, medicine, biology, chemistry, physics, maths or any other scientific discipline. With over 25 participating countries, worldwide, it has been dubbed the ‘Pop Idols of Science’! The South African winner will go on to compete against their peers on an international stage in the UK.
It’s not just about Fame however; this comes at a time where understanding science and technology are essential to our health and wellbeing. Science should be useful and can only be so if the public is able to engage and understand. Unfortunately, scientific concepts and findings are not always communicated all too well to the public. This is what FameLab strives to address.
Contestants have three minutes to present a scientific topic to a panel of expert judges. The challenge is that presentations should be accurate and informative but also entertaining and original, all while making sure the public audience understands.
“FameLab will be won by a brilliant young scientist who can tell a story, inspire an audience, and prove that science is fun. Good science communication is vitally important in South Africa, not just for the talented scientists who want their work to be known, but also for those who can work with brilliant ideas to create solutions to real-world problems.” says Colm McGivern, Director of British Council South Africa.
Contestants will undergo training in science communication, preparing them to be the next science personality, ahead of auditions at the heats.
For those who cannot attend the auditions, the opportunity to submit a video entry can keep you in the game. For more information on how to enter, visit the British Council South Africa website. The deadline for video submissions is 31 January 2016.
The National finals will be on May 4th and are being held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. The specific dates for trainings and heats are as follows:
|
Institution |
Training |
Heat |
|
Mintek (internal) |
22 Jan 2016 |
12 Feb 2016 |
|
CSIR (internal) |
28 Jan 2016 |
3 March 2016 |
|
Unisa |
29 Jan 2016 (internal) |
4 March 2016 (public) |
|
Stellenbosch CIB/ CREST/SCISTIP (internal) |
2 Feb 2016 |
18 Feb 2016 |
|
UWC (SAASTA) (public) |
3 Feb 2016 |
16 Feb 2016 |
|
SKA (internal) |
4 Feb 2016 |
17 Feb 2016 |
|
Limpopo (SAASTA) (public) |
10 Feb 2016 |
11 Feb 2016 |
|
Fort Hare (SAASTA) (public) |
29 Feb 2016 |
1 March 2016 |
The winners of the National finals will compete at the International finals at The Times Cheltenham Festival in the UK in June 2016.