Festival Hub

Drop by NanoFest's Festival Hub every day for an engaging selection of free, hands-on science for the whole whānau.

Science Train!

All aboard the scenic Taieri Gorge train for a truly original, hands-on science show full of crafts and experiments!

Art and Science Panel

Our panelists discuss the opportunities and challenges that exist when we blur the lines between art and science.

Future of Food Panel

Join us for an invigorating evening exploring the future of food, with our panel of researchers and leaders in the field.

How to Vandalise Wikipedia with Mike Dickison

Can we trust Wikipedia? How does it even work? Find out how the editable website stays reliable.

The Wonderful World of Bubbles : Science Show!

Love science? Love giant bubbles? This Science Show is for you!

Full Force Science Show!

Chairs of nails. Whip cracks. This science show hits hard.

Escape Room: Data Guardians

Understand the nuances of data sovereignty and intellectual property with puzzles!

ARTiculate Your Research!

Create an artistic piece that communicates your area of science or research.

The Currents of Aotearoa

Explore the planetary and climate sciences through theatre, creativity, community, fun and play. Haere Mai!

Time Once Upon Us

View this enticing snippet of an ongoing project by Pam MacKinlay that entwines climate data, weaving, light, and sensing technologies.

ArtScience Exhibition: Once Upon a Time – Now, Then, Where, When

Join us for an ArtScience exhibition exploring TIME - biological clocks, memory, space-time and culture. Do we exist in time, or time in us?

Meet the Scientists!

Meet the scientists and artists who have created this exhibition and enjoy a performance piece where theatre meets physics!

Ongo Mei he Fonua: Sounds from the Land

Meet artist Sione Faletau and watch how he creates art from data.

Otago Harbour's Secret Sea Life

Find Otago’s Secret Sea Life in a family-friendly event with coloring-in, scavenger hunts, and local experts ready to share their stories!

Junior Marine Discoveries: Sea, Learn, Play!

A hands-on introduction to local marine species, for our youngest marine enthusiasts!

Marine Encounters

Meet local marine species and discover what makes them special!

Intergalactic Bath Bombs!

Out of this World! Intergalactic Bath Bomb Workshop

Build a Rocket with Wonder Project!

Budding rocket scientists wanted! Build your own rocket, then come and launch it with us on the weekend!

Rocket Launch off with Wonder Project!

Budding rocket scientists wanted! Build, launch, and compete to send your bottle rocket soaring further than everyone else's.

Build a Computer!

Learn about the inner workings of a computer by taking one apart and rebuilding it to take home!

Get Creative with Digi-Waste!

You won't believe what is thrown out as digi-waste and what it can be repurposed into – come and see!

Chain Reactions!

Grab your family and friends and help us create a chain reaction from our fun mix of toys, kitchen equipment, blocks and balls.

Science Alive! Antarctica Film: Life Below Zero

Travel to the coldest place on Earth to see what life is like for researchers working on Antarctica in this short, 360 degree video.

Science Alive! Solar System Exploration

Step inside our Discovery Dome for immersive journeys through space, science, and the natural world.

Carnival of the Animals

This hands-on workshop invites participants to make soft toy animals and reflect on which lives we protect or overlook in conservation.

Beetlemania!

From woven loss to reframing the windscreen phenomenon.

Space Art – Explore, Create and Learn!

Help us bring the Wall St Mall alive with creative and colourful space art!

Shell Poems

Participants will be invited to write haiku poems on themes of memory, place or transformation on shells.

Heart Science for Kids

Learn how your heart works and why it sometimes beats slower and other times it feels like it is going to burst out of your chest!

HeartOtago Dissection Lab

Join the HeartOtago crew to dissect a lamb's heart

Groovy Science Day

A groovy family fun day at Tūhura Otago Museum packed with science activities.

Tycho Goes to Mars

Join Tycho on an adventure to learn all about Mars.

Exploring the Dunedin Night Sky and all its Wonders

Come explore the wonders of the Southern Night sky with laser tours and telescope viewings this NanoFest.

Repair Cafe

Come along to get clothes mended, digital devices fixed, and small electronics restored to life.

The Big Blue Imagination Playground!

Build your own playground with our Big Blue Blocks!

Science Working for New Zealand – 100 Years and Counting

Learn about some of the positive impacts of public-funded science research in Aotearoa NZ in this pop-up exhibition.

High School Robotics Workshop: FIRST Tech Challenge

Come and build a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) robot chassis with members of an award winning FIRST Tech Challenge robotics team from the U.S.A

Dr Rock!

Hub: All rocks tell a story! Bring your favourite rocks, minerals or fossils for Dr Rock to identify and chat about.

Rocks for Tots!

Discover how little rocks hold big stories about our planet's past and future.

Pest Plant or Just a Weed?

Hub: Learn the difference between weeds and pest plants, and what you can do to protect Otago's environment.

Open Valley Urban Ecosanctuary

Hub: Explore Open VUE projects – discover local sustainability initiatives and how to protect Dunedin’s biodiversity from your own backyard.

How Sensitive are You to Cold?

Hub: Test your body’s stress response to cold by plunging your hand into icy water and watch your heart rate react in real time.

From Plant to Plate: Biochemistry of Plants and Flavour

Hub: Explore the science of flavour, smell, and plants with hands-on experiments.

Pepeketua of Aotearoa

Hub: NZFrogs will showcase the Pepeketua of Aotearoa series in English and Te Reo Maori, alongside fun activities, t-shirts and stickers!

Bugs in the Grass

Hub: Learn how we can help the bugs, bees and butterflies that live in lawns and grassy parts of the Town Belt.

DOC Coastal Otago Presents: All Things Conservation!

Hub: Ōtepoti Dunedin DOC share the science of naturing.

Tuhura Otago Museum/The MacDiarmid Institute Pop-up

Hub: Visit Tūhura Otago Museum and the MacDiarmid Institute's pop-up stall packed with fun, interactive science.

Unexpected Physics

Hub: Discover the many ways that you never expected physics to be present in your everyday life.

Citizen Science Project Discovery Table

Hub: Find out about citizen science projects you can get involved in and how your contribution helps scientists!

The Science Behind Your Food

Hub: Discover the science behind your food. From farm to fork and beyond!

Heart Hub

Hub: Join the HeartOtago crew for a closer look at our mighty heart or join in some fun heart-themed crafts.

Making Waves with Te Wāhi Auaha – Sound, Light and Electronic Experiments from the Scrap Heap

Hub: Explore the coolest things we've found so far in our quest to develop STEAM activities from waste materials in Dunedin Libraries.

Otago Entomology – Getting Bzzzy With Bugs!

Hub: It's a bug's life, and we're living it! Love or hate 'em, bugs are vital to our planet, and we can care for them like they care for us!

Orokonui Eco Explorers

Hub: Meet the Orokonui Dream Team and discover how you can help protect native taoka species through games and hands-on exploration.

Ōtepoti Magnetic Leaves Bioblitz Follow-up

Hub: Last year at NZISF we Bioblitzed.. Here's a chance to learn what was discovered by looking at Ōtepoti's leaves through a magnetic lens.

Ask a Wikimedian

Hub: Roving Wikimedian Dr Mike Dickison will be at the Festival Hub, ready to answer any and all questions about Wikipedia.

Gadgets for Good: How Tech is Helping Create a Predator Free Dunedin

Hub: Meet the gadgets guarding our native wildlife in city and bush and chat with the experts behind them.

Pest Management in Otago

Hub: What are pests, which ones are the biggest issue in Otago, and what are we doing about them?

Preserving Nature's Song

Hub: Explore conservation, wildlife research, and restoration projects inspiring communities to protect nature for future generations.

LEGO Robotics Workshop: FLL Founders Edition

Come and learn about programming and robotics using LEGO Spike Prime robots.

LEGO Robotics Workshop: FLL Future Edition

LEGO Robotics Workshop: FLL Future Edition - come and play!