Recapping #pint21 online

While the vaccines have helped shape the horizon of the COVID19 pandemic, it was not enough to ensure that #pint21 would be back live this May. Therefore for the second year, Pint of Science countries across the world facilitated online events to continue our mission of breaking down barriers to accessing science.

Translating the events online was not without issues but as volunteers had taken the initiative to organise online events prior (check them out at #pintNLthuis!), the general organisation went smoother than expected. In addition, a bit different from other Pint of Science countries, the #pintNL team looked to host only one event per evening as to not overload the audience with sitting in front of a screen (especially after a full day of sitting behind a screen for work).

To kick off the events, in the first week we had three cities present: Amsterdam, Nijmegen, and Maastricht. The topics were engaging with the audience and allowed to have open discussions about their research, ranging from love in times of COVID19 to how our gut may be the second brain in our bodies. As speakers were presenting from home, our Nijmegen event even had a glimpse of one of the speaker’s fully stocked bar at home! A nice COVID19 project and sure to inspire others to have their new ‘to-go’ bar for the future.

The second week expanded the number of events with a different city hosting an event each night. Beginning from Groningen and making our way down to Eindhoven, each night captured the audience by with pondering topics such as the impact of microplastics to our health, the ethical use of animals in medical experiments and the ever increasing impact of robotics and AI in our daily lives. For the #pintNL team, it was nice to welcome the Leiden team this year and it was great to see them host their very first event! Not wanting to spoil all the magic behind the events, you can check them all out on our YouTube channel (here).

So does what the future hold in store for the #pintNL team? Well first, a nice summer vacation is needed to relax and take a well deserved break from research, work, and volunteering. And what better way to relax than with upcoming blog posts from the #pintNL blog team! As to the upcoming year, With the vaccine roll out increasing, we aim to bring #pint22 back to the pubs (and we have a secret in store – more details to follow soon). Keep on the lookout for more details and hope to see you all live in the coming future!

Warmest regards,

Pint of Science Netherlands team