UWE Bristol sustainability solutions show to feature at COP26

A new planetarium show designed with the Engineering department at UWE Bristol has been chosen to showcase sustainability solutions as part of the Green Zone at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow from 31 October – 12 November 2021.

“We Make Our Future” is an interactive, educational & entertaining science show for the next generation of engineers. The show has been designed with planetarium experts Explorer Dome and is part of the Inspire educational work from the Digital Engineering Technology and Innovation (DETI) team at UWE Bristol. 

Full-dome projections allow attendees to visit engineering marvels from history and explore the pros and cons of modern life. These will look to celebrate the ingenuity of human engineering, address current issues around climate change, and introduce engineering as a relevant and attainable aspiration for all young people.

Guests will also learn how the engineering design process can spark our imagination and find sustainability solutions to the greatest challenges of our time.

We Make Our Future sets out the idea that to achieve net zero and a low carbon global economy, everything we make and use will need to be completely re-imagined and re-engineered. It aims to show that the digital revolution is boosting the potential for engineers’ design thinking to optimise not only the development process but also the potential for collaborative citizen engagement.

DETI’s ambitions include bringing together industry, academia, and education from across the West of England region. The research collaboration aims to identify and develop the tools, technologies, processes, and skills needed to rapidly accelerate and embed digital engineering to deliver energy transition and clean transport.

Project lead Dr Laura Fogg-Rogers, Senior Lecturer in STEM Education and Communication, said: “We are so pleased to be selected to attend COP26 – at such a critical time in history, all industries need to come together to make a difference for our future. Our new show celebrates the ingenuity of human engineering and shows how we can harness our creativity to implement sustainability solutions. Thinking like an engineer offers hope to solve global problems and bring about real change. We see this as a call to action for the diverse and socially conscious engineers of today – and tomorrow”.

The COP26 summit, whose theme is ‘Together for our Planet’, will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In parallel to COP26, UWE Bristol will be highlighting its climate action through the new Climate Action Hub on its Frenchay campus throughout the 2020/21 academic year.

The Hub, located in Z block, is a dedicated space to showcase the work of UWE staff and students to help achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030 and inspire others to take action on the climate and ecological emergency.

The ‘We Make Our Future’ show is available to tour schools after COP26 in Explorer Dome’s mobile planetarium. To book the show please look at the resources here: https://digitaltrailblazers.co.uk/resources