Event(s) Summary
Number of Events Organized During Brain Awareness Week:
2
Year:
2020
Type of Events Held:
- Exhibit
- Other
- Social Media Campaign
- Other: Book Donation and Library Displays
Target Audiences:
- General Public
- University students
Approximate Number of People Reached:
100
Details of Major Brain Awareness Week Events/Activities:
Our department sponsored two events for Brain Awareness Week 2020:1. Book Donation and Displays with local libraries:Our faculty curated a list of current, well-written neurobiology books that we thought our local libraries (within a radius of the university) should have. We figured out which of the list that our libraries didn’t yet have, coordinated a donation of those books, and asked if they would add books from the list to a display, including educational resources from the Dana Foundation. Many were excited and interested! Unfortunately, Brain Awareness Week occurred right around when things in our area were shutting down because of Coronavirus. While we were able to safely transport colorful packages of books, health booklets, kids educational activity books, and fun Dana freebies to 6 libraries, I’m not sure how many were able to go through with their displays for the public.It was a passive way of celebrating the week, which worked well for our faculty and staff who were not able to commit to a presentation or a hands-on demonstration to a group this year. Maybe next year we can plan ahead to set up activities and interaction in the children’s sections of some of these libraries.2. Art+theBrain exhibition in conjunction with the Department of Art at our University:We submitted 25 images to the Art+theBrain Exhibit that the Art Dept hosted to celebrate the intersection between visual art & scientific research, & to create discussion around brain science. Our opening reception was cancelled because of the Coronavirus, & campus closed down shortly after the opening, but the coordinating instructor was able to add images of the pieces online. This may be an annual exhibit, using art from a fall course.
Event Planning & Publicity
Publicity Methods Used:
- Calendar Listings (newspapers, radio, television)
- Emails
- Posters/Flyers
- Website
- Social Media
Which of These Publicity Methods Was The Most Successful?
Resources
Of the Dana Foundation publications/resources distributed at your event(s), if any, please indicate the three most popular. Please choose up to three. If "other," please indicate below:
- Successful Aging & Your Brain
- Brain Awareness Week Stickers
- Brain-shaped Erasers
What other downloadable materials would you like the Foundation to provide?
- New Puzzles/Games
Which BAW graphic materials did you use in publicizing your events?
- Brain Awareness Week Logos
Feedback & Keys to Success
How do you feel BAW participation benefited your organization and the local community?
The main benefit I can see is that our department has a relationship now with 6 local libraries and they have a curated list of books that they can suggest if people come in asking for neurobiology books. We also donated several books to the children’s libraries, so we are reaching more young minds with brain science!We are also establishing a relationship with the art department with the Art+theBrain course and exhibit.
Please share any suggestions or lessons learned that may help others plan future events:
We started planning with a committee sometime in January, but with only 1-2 meetings a month, it was not enough time to plan and execute a large event. If we want more input from faculty or to coordinate with other departments or local organizations to do a bigger event, we need to start thinking about it close to the beginning of the semester. If just a few people are deciding with little input from others outside of the committee, 2-3 months may be enough.
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