Having been a STEM Ambassador myself for many years, as well as taking part in lots of BigBang events, I’ve been on the volunteer side of the STEM Hub for a long time. Through my company, Creative Space, I’m now running a project called Space@TheStade, bringing astronomy and space science to the people of Hastings through free public engagement events. So, for the first time, I found myself on the event management side, with a real requirement for support from the STEM Hub.

The STEM Ambassador Hub for South East England was incredibly helpful and really pulled out the stops to find the right Ambassadors for the task. Within days of making the request, the STEM Hub had matched up 13 STEM Ambassadors, 12 of whom formed the main group of volunteers for the first event in the project - Space@TheStade: Solar System Special. They were a fantastic team, either working independently or assisting staff on a range of activities including Measuring Lightspeed (with a microwave oven, bread and margarine!), a Rocket Workshop, assisting with planetarium shows, and advising people on the set-up and use of telescopes in the Telescope Clinic.

Based on evaluation and feedback, the Solar System Special was a complete success. The outcome just wouldn’t have been so positive without the invaluable support from the STEM Hub and the incredibly generous help from the individual Ambassadors. From the feedback I’ve received from some of the Ambassadors, I think they enjoyed it as much as the visitors! One Ambassador said: “Congratulations on a fantastic event… Do let me know if you need volunteers for the next one, would love to stay involved.”

Melanie Davies FRAS,
Founder & Science Director, Creative Space Science CIC

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