Centenary Camp Offers The Ultimate ‘Guide’ To Science

As Girlguiding UK prepares to celebrate its centenary with a camping adventure like no other, SCY is helping to ensure the world of science and innovation makes its mark with the young people at the heart of this very special occasion.

Between 31 July and 7 August, the Harewood Estate, Leeds, plays host to Girlguiding UK’s biggest ever Guide camp.

Spanning a campsite equivalent to the size of 75 football pitches, the Girlguiding UK Centenary Camp, supported by Welcome to Yorkshire, brings together thousands of Guides from across the region, UK and beyond for an extraordinary week of adventures on and off site, from geocaching and snow sports, to abseiling, mountain boarding…and of course some ‘scientastic’ action.

Adding her talents to the centenary celebration is Dr Annie Hodgson from the University of York. Annie, Outreach Officer for the University’s Chemistry Department, will be helping the young Guides explore the science of water at the event’s Aqualab. 

The host of water-based science activities ranges from building water rockets and engineering soap-powered boats, to Annie’s own speciality, giant and intriguingly shaped bubbles, made with a little help from her ‘secret recipe’ bubble mixture.

Similarly looking to inspire the next generation of women scientists, SCY has organised a series of special evening talks at the camp. 

Starting with a talk to enthuse the ‘grey matter’, Royal Society University Research Fellow Dr Jenny Read, from the Institute of Neuroscience at Newcastle University, explores the vital role of the brain in vision, including the mistakes made which lead to optical illusions.

Award-winning inventor Emily Cummins, a final year Business Management student and Enterprise Scholar at Leeds University, will also share her passion for science.

An ambassador for young women in science, and named as The Barclays Woman of the Year 2009, Emily, 22, will describe how an early interest and talent for engineering is now helping to revolutionise the lives of people living in poverty across Southern Africa.

The science continues with Marilyn Brodie and Nicky Fuller, from the Centre for Science Education at Sheffield Hallam University, revealing the amazing mathematics behind much of our art, music and nature.

“The Centenary Camp looks set to provide thousands of young women with some incredible opportunities and memories,” says Professor Nicola Spence, Chief Executive at Science City York. “We hope to add to the experience by bringing something a little different to the mix to help fire the imagination and enable the girls to meet some truly inspirational role models.”