Creating Citizen Scientists

The Ibrahim Bodur Çanakkale Children’s Science Centre is the brainchild of The Kale Group – an industrial conglomerate spanning everything from textiles to robotics, ceramics to transport. The new centre will sit on the coast of Canakkale, a city undergoing a transformation into a smart and sustainable metropolis and the very place where the company’s ceramic factory was first established in 1957.

Our vision for the new science centre was not to create a museum, biopark or technology attraction, but something that combined them all into one to inspire and empower.

The attraction would be a call to action. It would be up-front and honest about the challenges facing our world: sustainability, climate change, overurbanisation. But it would not be a place for doom and gloom; rather, the challenges promised to ignite inspiration. It would be a place where children become excited about the possibility of a better world and want to be part of the change.

Displays promised to turn visiting children into active citizens in a way that the classroom cannot. Interactivities would be opportunities to create solutions and test technologies that will improve the world. The experience was envisioned as an exciting foray through four zones: Techno Nature, Smart City, Marine Life, Future Space. Each zone centred around a site for engagement: The Live Lab, The Forum, The Research Rig, The Launch Pad. Children’s engagement would actively shape these physical zones as the displays respond to their interaction.

The architectural vision evolved around the idea of connecting children back out to the natural world. Our design included a rainwater harvesting system running down through an exhibition area and displays that lead children out onto the roof, into the surrounding landscape and even out to the sea directly beyond.

Our interpretive approach was carefully constructed around children’s learning styles. Each zone would have a range of activities and experiences that use different engagement types. The zones are underpinned by the fundamentals of the ESTAM subjects – entrepreneurship, science, technology, engineering, arts, maths. In each area, children would be able to discover and follow the cycle of learning – experience, observe, imagine, experience and make.