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Science communication and engagement

‘Postcards from the Future’ and other participatory formats invite people to contribute their own ideas, share their perspectives and reflect on possible futures.

Science in Dialogue

How can complex topics such as plastic cycles be communicated in such a way that people not only absorb information, but can also contribute their own questions and ideas? ZuKUNSToff combines science communication with creative and participatory formats that encourage visitors to explore different perspectives and reflect on possible futures.

The focus is not on conveying a single ‘correct’ answer. Rather, the activities are designed to help visitors better understand the bigger picture, develop their own ideas and engage with others on how we deal with plastics and resources.

Contributing your own ideas

The project has developed various formats that invite visitors to get involved in a playful way. They offer different ways of engaging with issues relating to sustainability, resource use and social responsibility.

Postcards from the Future

The Future Postcards offer a simple way to record your own thoughts and ideas. Visitors can leave their ideas behind, thereby contributing their personal perspectives on possible futures.

The format creates space for individual contributions and highlights the fact that people have different expectations, hopes and ideas about how the future might take shape.

Handwritten postcards depicting the future hang from a net above a desk containing pens and other postcards.
The ‘Postcards from the Future’ invite visitors to record their own ideas and hopes for the future and to bring different perspectives to light (Photo: Julian Knigge, Ostfalia).

Auction of the Last Piece of Coal

The ‘Auction of the Last Piece of Coal’ explores issues surrounding resources and their future use. The playful format encourages participants to reflect on the value of finite resources and the choices we might make in managing them.

The ‘Letzte Kohle’ exhibition stand, featuring a noticeboard to which handwritten bid cards are pinned.
The ‘Auction of the Last Piece of Coal’ invites visitors to reflect on the value of a finite resource and to write down their own bids on cards (Photo: Alexandra Schautz, phaeno Wolfsburg).

Treasury 2080

The ‘Treasury 2080’ offers a creative way of exploring ideas about a possible future. It encourages us to think about which objects, materials and values might be important in the future, and what should be preserved for future generations.

The ‘Treasury 2080’ exhibition stand, featuring labelled ‘future’ cards hung on a net and several transparent display cases containing objects on a table.
The ‘Treasury 2080’ encourages visitors to reflect on the future: which objects, materials and values should be preserved for future generations? (Photo: Alexandra Schautz, phaeno Wolfsburg)

Participation as part of science communication

These formats demonstrate how science communication can go beyond the mere conveyance of information. Visitors are invited to contribute their own thoughts and to discover different perspectives.

ZuKUNSToff thus combines scientific content with creative approaches and open-ended questions. Engaging with plastics in this way also provides an opportunity to discuss resource use, responsibility and potential societal developments.