Thousands of visitors from all ages at the Utrecht Science Park during the ‘Weekend van de Wetenschap’

Date:
WvdW 2024, Máxima, kinderen, labjas

From growing cells to making your own flower bulbs. And from researching soil with fungi to practising in court. There was plenty to experience at the Utrecht Science Park during the ‘Weekend van de Wetenschap’ (Weekend of Science).

The Utrecht Science Week wrapped up with the ‘ Weekend van de Wetenschap’ on Sunday 6 October. Six organisations at the Utrecht Science Park opened their doors to science lovers of all ages.

Starting in the morning, visitors were already queuing up to discover science at the various organisations.
Throughout the day, it was nicely crowded around the Koningsberger building and the Botanic Gardens, where Utrecht University’s wide range of activities could be found, with experiments, presentations and experiments on various topics such as the brain, veterinary medicine, climate, law and health. In addition, visitors could do research at the Tuinlab in the Botanic Gardens.

At the Hubrecht Institute, the activities of the institute itself, the Westerdijk Institute and Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht came together. Here, visitors could, among other things, isolate their DNA, make a fungus and look through the eyes of a doctor.

At the Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital (WKZ), visitors were introduced to bacteria in our bodies and there was an inflatable bowel through which they could walk as true bacteria. They also practised dealing with emotions, using VR glasses to practice different situations where these emotions arise.

The Princess Máxima Center opened its doors to introduce visitors to the world of researchers and, for a day, they were researchers themselves. Wearing lab coats, they did many experiments, were shown around the labs and gained knowledge at the mini-lectures.

The ‘Weekend van de Wetenschap’ at the Utrecht Science Park was a great success. It is great to see that even the younger audience can learn about science and the research being done here at the Utrecht Science Park in an accessible way. This was a great ending of the Utrecht Science Week. 

Registration for Utrecht Science Week 2026 is now open: the knowledge festival at Utrecht Science Park

From Friday 25 September to Sunday 4 October, the sixth edition of Utrecht Science Week will take place. Utrecht Science Park will open its doors to everyone interested in (applied) science and innovation in the fields of life sciences, health, and sustainability.

The first programme elements have now been announced and registration is open. Many more events and activities will be added to the programme in the coming weeks.

New artificial heart implanted for the first time in Europe

Earlier this month at UMC Utrecht, a patient with advanced heart failure became the first person in Europe to receive a BrioVAD ventricular assist device. The new system is being evaluated in a European study and may offer advantages over the existing ventricular assist device. For UMC Utrecht, the implantation marks a new milestone in a long history of innovation in the field of mechanical circulatory support.

Successful first edition of Utrecht Life Sciences TechConnect

On 4 June 2026, researchers, technology experts, facility staff and innovation partners from across the Utrecht Life Sciences community gathered at Utrecht Science Park for the first edition of Utrecht Life Sciences TechConnect. The new annual event was created to strengthen connections between researchers and technology facilities, showcase advanced research technologies, and stimulate collaboration across disciplines.

Opening Utrecht Science Week with keynote by Juliette Legler on the hidden influence of environmental chemicals

On Friday, September 25, the annual science festival ‘Utrecht Science Week’ kicks off once again at Utrecht Science Park. We are pleased to announce that this year, Prof. Dr. Ir. Juliette Legler will deliver the Utrecht Science Lecture. Juliette Legler is Professor of Toxicology at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Utrecht University and leads the ‘One Health Toxicology’ group at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS).