Background
The Science and Creativity Hub at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute offers participants a framework for thinking through, critiquing, and developing projects in various mediums dealing with science and/or technology, aimed at Israeli children from all sectors, from early childhood to adolescence.
The underlying premise of the hub is that although there are many frameworks in Israel for teaching science and technology, there is no designated framework that supports original works on science and technology in their broad context. The author and researcher of butterflies Vladimir Nabokov said that “there is no science without fancy, and no art without facts.” We agree. It is important that young people develop an understanding of the basic elements that affect our bodies, our consciousness, our world, and the universe in which we live, as they are manifested in the various sciences, from physics and mathematics, to biology and ecology, and to the latest developments in artificial intelligence. But it is no less important to create a culture of books, plays, games, exhibitions, brief films, podcasts, and even music, that make science and technology accessible in creative ways, while simultaneously addressing the philosophical, historical, and ethical contexts in relation to science, technology, society, and the environment.
About the Hub
The hub is intended for creators in various fields—including film, literature, theater, curatorship, art, music, and more—with experience in, or an interest in, creating content for children and adolescents that deals with topics related to science and scientific thought. Examples of possible proposals of projects include the following: a play on relations between humans and machines, a sci-fi novel on the use of genetic engineering in humans, comics on the topic of global warming, a series of video clips on the secrets of the astrophysics of the universe, a podcast on topics of economics and the environment, an idea for an exhibition on green energy, a book of photographs of what goes on inside a cell.
Meetings will take place throughout the year. Acceptance to the hub is competitive; each year eight projects will be accepted. Each accepted project will receive a research and creativity grant of 10,000 NIS, and three selected projects will receive a development grant at the end of the hub period.
