School groups, walkers, families or foreign rugby supporters passing by by chance, thousands of them took part in the Science Festival, from 13 to 15 October. “ We noticed that many people who passed by by chance stayed in the place, sometimes for more than two hours. It’s great that the Science Festival can attract people to the pavilion », welcomes Agatha Mattei, event coordinator.
Participants roamed from one platform to another, and their number reached 70 this year, 10 more than in the previous session. If the organizers were satisfied with this increase in the number of events, they were particularly sensitive to their increase in size and quality: “ We had over 215 Daily models, it’s great ! », comments enthusiastic Agathe Mattei. The meeting of scholars and the public is a real success, and the challenge of publishing seems to have been overcome, even sometimes on very complex topics. For example, the exhibition Head in the airWhich focuses on dark matter in the universe. A difficult-to-access topic made understandable and engaging by students of the Cosmology Observatory – Pythias Institute. Throughout the week, they gave two shows a day, gradually gaining ease and complicity with the audience.
Pargemon Square, convenient location
Another challenge is understanding people who are very different. The traditional audience for the Science Festival is school groups. This year, approximately 1,700 students from primary to secondary levels attended. That the event even managed to fill its scale on Friday, in the middle of a day of social mobilization, is evidence of the real enthusiasm for this meeting in Pargemon Square.
This location just a few meters from the Old Port certainly makes it possible to attract a wide range of audiences and the organizers are aware of this. ” In a study conducted on Science Day fans, Marseille fans showed anomalous data. Typically, the audience consists mainly of higher socio-professional groups. This is not the case with us “A family and popular audience, largely made up of people who have wandered into the Science Festival.” Enthusiasts are almost marginal », she adds, reaffirming the success of the project. Event data carefully analyzed by organizers.
All participants answer a questionnaire that feeds into a sociological study about the festival. It is implemented in collaboration with a researcher from the Observatory of Cultural Practices at the University of Aix-Marseille. The aim is to monitor the peculiarities of the Marseille audience to adapt the proposals from year to year. “ What we try to work on the most is that people who pass through the front come back “, confirms Agathe Mattei, who admits to working on this point as much as on communication.
The Science Festival also hosts countless open days in laboratories, among other smaller meetings spread throughout Marseille. Loyalty seems to exist, according to Agatha Mattei: “ People are coming back. Once they go there, they do other activities such as laboratory visits and other activities near home. » An edition that fulfills its promises to the organizers, who hope that they will be able to do so as well next year.
