This year, we have taken a joint initiative together with our sister organization Kista Science City to boost talent, curiosity and creativity in residential areas with great potential to contribute to Swedish competitiveness. Diversity, inclusion and transboundary collaborations are becoming increasingly important for the development of new knowledge and new solutions that are of benefit for society and individuals. The request for highly educated people is increasing and it is important to boost the potential of all talents in Sweden to develop our competitiveness. Still, it is twice as common that youths with college educated parents continue to higher education compared to those with parents without college education.
The initiative was built around a photo contest on Instagram with the theme Creativity and Curiosity, the foundation for both science and art. Youths were encouraged to explore and portray their surroundings during the spring in a way that could make them approach science and technology in a playful way. The participants were also invited to a prize ceremony and exhibition with photos from the contest at Järvaveckan where they could talk about their future dreams with representatives from the universities in Stockholm. This year, the contest was open for residents around Järvafältet in Stockholm, an area with several districts where the level of education is among the lowest in the city.
During the time the contest was open, we were invited to schools to talk about science and education, and a photo workshop was organized at Fryshuset in Husby. In total, more than 200 entries were submitted, and five winners were presented at the main stage at Järvaveckan where they were handed their awards. For us as organizers, it was a pleasure to see how proud the participants, their families, friends and teachers were when they saw the photos on display and when the winners appeared on stage. And hopefully the contact with the universities on site at Järvaveckan and during the time for the contest have empowered the participants and encouraged them to think about pursuing a university education.
In the effort, we collaborated with all three universities in Stockholm as well as with Vetenskapens Hus, Fryshuset, Canon, My Dream Now and The Global Village and several schools around Järvafältet in Stockholm. We have learnt a lot and formed new alliances that we can continue building on. As for Stockholm Science City and Kista Science City, the initiative has further strengthened our ties to each other, hopefully leading to more fruitful collaborations in the future.
More info on the contest can be found on www.minakvarter.info
The winning entries can be found on the Instagram account @minakvarter.