All About Stream.
Albert Einstein believed intuition, inspiration and imagination to be more important than knowledge. At STREAM, we believe that intuition, inspiration and imagination are what creates ‘useful’ knowledge. Our vision is to foster creativity in our research scientists to inspire interest in science across the lifespan and to be inspired, and draw upon the intuition and imagination of communities to guide research on the ‘wicked problems’ facing the world today. STREAM is the crossroad between research and community – it supports programs and events that develop a deeper sense of connection between the self (the knowing) and societal challenges.
STREAM is a collaborative of researchers and practitioners at the University of Newcastle, as well as community advisors, dedicated to engaging with our community to tackle the big issues facing the world today. Our activities are varied with knowledge exchange at the heart of everything we do.
We bring together expertise in science, creativity and education to communicate complex issues through the use of technological and creative advances developed. We do this through public exhibitions, workshops, seminars, talks and roundtable discussions. We envision STREAM as a place to safely explore real issues through stimulating dialogue and debate.
Our exhibitions provide an evocative learning environment that attract a highly diverse audience to feel empowered to learn through a process of self-paced exploration and investigation. The stimulating and aesthetically inspiring exhibitions will allow the audience to develop a deeper sense of connection between the self and societal challenges. Our collaborative curates these exhibitions based on requests from scientists and creatives looking to engage with the community.
Our workshops, seminars, talks and roundtable discussions provide a versatile learning and research space for groups across the lifespan wishing to explore different ways of thinking about societal challenges. These exist as both stand-alone events, coinciding with topics reaching the community at the time, and as part of our exhibition package.
Together these ‘thinking spaces’ will provide a nexus for creative expression and communication across the disciplines, and will allow for the sharing and exchange of knowledge between the University, other stakeholders and the community.
Sciences provide an understanding of a universal experience, Arts are a universal understanding of a personal experience…they are both a part of us and a manifestation of the same thing…the arts and sciences are avatars of human creativity.
What Stream means to our team
Michelle Kelly
Tackling the big issues facing our community requires a depth of understanding that each of us alone does not have. It takes a concerted and collaborative effort from the community, researchers and the government. It requires each of us to listen to one another, and exchange knowledge and communicate our values openly and with mutual respect and understanding.
For me, STREAM is the medium through which genuine exchanges of knowledge, values and lived experience can occur.
Contact Michelle for further information about the Brain exhibition.
Alex Callen
I believe that it is community that drives change, and that it is research that builds knowledge. We need the humanity of community in our research to tackle the wicked problems of the world and we need the true and accurate voice of research within the community to remain focussed on the things that matter. But most of all, we need to work together for change. And this is at the heart of STREAM – Communication for Change.
STREAM is the space where community can influence change by sharing their experiences to direct the future of research. And STREAM is the space where new research is shared with imagination and passion.
Contact Alex for further information about the Biomes exhibition.
Bernadette Drabsch
