The science festival “sCYence Fair” organised annually by The Cyprus Institute is a unique opportunity for children of all ages to get to know science in a fun and educational way. Every spring, students from primary and secondary schools are invited to present their own innovative ideas and their scientific experiments, whereas the most innovative and effective ideas get rewarded.

 

The European Union pays particular attention to science with actions and programmes, such as Horizon Europe, the research and innovation programme with a budget well over 95 billion euros for the period 2021-2027; moreover, children are encouraged to get involved in technology, innovation and sciences.

 

The Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus supports this year’s science festival “sCYence Fair” 2023 and together with embassies of EU Member States in Cyprus will be present at the fair with scientific activities, experiments and products that will bring children closer to real life, modern technology.

 

The Representation of the European Commission in Cyprus will participate in the fair in collaboration with HERON, Digital Education and Learning (Mathisis.org) giving the opportunity to our visitors to follow a coding / programming activity from the Cyprus Museum of Computing curriculum. Children will learn how to assemble a computer using Raspberry Pi and perform programming drills with ΒΒC Micro:bit. We will also give away promotional material and showcase videos of scientific projects.

 

At the same time, following the initiative of the Swedish Εmbassy in Cyprus, which presides over the Council of the European Union, many countries will present innovative proposals and solutions to the daily problems we face, since one of the top priorities of the Swedish Presidency is tackling global climate change through competitiveness and innovation.

 

The goal is to transition to a resource-efficient, fossil-free and green future, which requires joint European steps to deliver innovative solutions. The engagement of companies and industries can help drive the green transition towards a circular economy.

 

The Embassy of Sweden will present the Hövding bicycle "helmet-airbag", which is an innovation that promotes environmentally friendly ways of traveling by making helmet use easier and cycling safer. The "helmet" is a collar placed around the cyclist's neck, which contains an airbag that inflates if the cyclist hits the ground. The collar detects sudden movement and will react within 0.1 seconds of activation. Hövding has been rated to be 8 times more effective than conventional helmets and is therefore a safe and sustainable option.

 

In addition, the Embassy of Sweden will present the Swedish exhibition "Pioneer the possible". This exhibition consists of 8 sections presenting the climate strategy in Sweden through innovation in various sectors, such as transport, heavy industry and energy production. The sections present the innovations of different Swedish companies applying cutting-edge technologies in their field.

 

The French Embassy will present the innovative start-up company Ÿnsect and its insect-based products for human, animal and plant nutrition. As climate change worsens the scarcity of resources and considering the increasing demand for food around the world, insects can act as a substitute source of protein. Using mealworms reared on specialized farms, Ÿnsect produces protein concentrates and oil products suitable for human consumption (meat substitutes, ice creams) or for animals (pets, fish, chicken and pork) and organic fertilizers. The application of the production method emits less CO2 than conventional cultivation methods and requires the use of smaller areas.

 

The Spanish Embassy will present the Cyprus Public Transport company. Cyprus Public Transport is a company of Spanish investment and since July 2020 is the operator of public transportation in Cyprus having won two of the government’s concession contracts, one in Nicosia and one in Larnaca. The company operates in Cyprus close to 3 years now and has brought the Spanish expertise and innovation to benefit the public transport in the cities in which it operates.

CPT, with 250 buses with clean euro 6 engines, has one of the newest and cleanest fleets in Europe, performed more than 17 million km since the launch of the company with 99%+ reliability and transports more than 7.5 million people per year. The buses are equipped with CCTV cameras and CPT is the first in Europe to install 5G WiFi in the entire fleet and at our bus stations. The visitors will have the opportunity to:

• Enter a small bus 7m long
• Learn about the use of the Pame App and the Motion Bus Cards
• Connect to 5G Wi-Fi, available on all buses and stations in Nicosia and Larnaca (first application in Europe)
• Participate in the demonstration of the software of automatic vending machines through panels (first application of automatic bus ticket vending machines in Cyprus)

 

The Embassy of Slovakia will present the "ECOCAPSULE", a self-sustainable, smart and mobile micro-house unit, powered by renewable energy sources that leaves almost no carbon footprint. In addition, a hologram device of the Slovak company Norriv will be presented. Special software graphics can create 3D renderings and animations of different logos and objects.

 

The Hungarian Embassy will present the Gömböc.  Gömböc looks like an egg with sharp edges and when you put it down it starts to spin and roll on its own. The Gömböc is the first known such shape, like a weeble toy, that always returns to its original upright position when moved on a horizontal surface, however, it has no added weight at the bottom. Gömböc is a major scientific innovation in mathematics, geology and biology as well as art and design.

 

The Embassy of Finland will present the company Spinnova. Spinnova is the only company in the world that can create textile fibers from cellulose without harmful chemicals and with minimal water use, emissions and zero waste. Spinnova produces the world's most sustainable textile materials for the benefit of the environment and humanity. So far, Spinnova has partnered with international brands such as Adidas and The North Face to create sustainable products.

 

The Embassy of the Netherlands will present an educational Minecraft game that takes place in one of the most famous museums in the world: the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The aim of the game is to help the curator of the Rijksmuseum solve a big problem: All the creepy creatures have escaped from the painting. Guests are asked to collect all the creatures from the garden and complete the board again.