OeAD: This summer a world of wonder and exploration will open again for children and teenagers

Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF) doubles funding: 18 children's and youth university projects will be funded with approximately 1.2 million euros

In the summer of 2021 Austrian universities and research institutions will be firmly in children's hands. This will be ensured by numerous children's and youth university projects across all federal provinces. They offer children and young people an exciting and age-adequate introduction to the world of science and contribute to the promotion of young academics. With 1.2 million euros the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF) provides twice as much funding as last time. With this the OeAD, Austria’s Agency for Education and Internationalisation, will fund a total of 18 projects with 12 extension modules that were reviewed by a jury of experts in the fields of science education, cultural education, children and youth research, didactics and citizen science. On average, some 40,000 children took part in university projects in each of the past years. For this year a significant increase is expected. An overview of all funded initiatives will be available on the OeAD website www.youngscience.at as of June.
An important criterion for the selection of the projects was diversity and inclusion. The funding programme aims to reach children and young people from different segments of the population and to counteract role stereotypes. Participants from socio-economically disadvantaged families, with migration backgrounds, with disabilities and in peripheral areas are increasingly addressed. Another focus is on sustainable development with the aim of conveying knowledge to children and young people about topics such as digitisation, climate education, health education and resilience research.
Accordingly,the offers of the children's and youth universities 2021 are multifaceted. The minister of education and science, Heinz Faßmann, emphasises the contribution of the children's and youth universities to the promotion of young talent and also the social component: “I would like every child to have a chance to get a taste of university life and to experience science first-hand. After the great privations that schoolchildren suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic the children's and youth universities are a welcome opportunity for social contacts with their peers and at the same time to catch up on education – of course always complying with the necessary measures to contain the pandemic.”
The OeAD’s managing director Jakob Calice emphasises: “With the projects that are funded this year both urban and rural areas can be covered. I am pleased that there are also more additional mobile science education programmes. This brings us closer to our goal of reaching as many children and teenagers as possible, regardless of their parents’ socio-economic backgrounds. This summer a world of wonder and exploration will open again!”
In addition to the children's and youth universities there is an additional offer called “Holiday care with a scientific ambition”. This is a follow-up project to the “Science holidays” that took place for the first time last year. All funded children's and youth university projects of the BMBWF will be provided with free COVID-19 test kits for the classroom events during the summer holidays (3 July to 12 September).
OeAD – Agency for Education and Internationalisation
For 60 years the OeAD has been advising, supporting and connecting people and institutions in education, science, research and culture with its future-oriented programmes. As an agency of the Republic of Austria the OeAD thus contributes to inclusive, equal and high-quality education. The OeAD’s fields of activity are in Austria, Europe and internationally in priority countries. The OeAD is an interface to educational offers for all phases of life – from kindergarten and school education to higher education and science, vocational education and training and adult education.