World Science Festival

The World Science Festival logo.

The World Science Festival, an annual science festival, is a production of the World Science Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in New York City.[1]

The Foundation’s mission is to cultivate a general public informed by science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future.

History

The World Science Festival was founded and created by Brian Greene, professor of mathematics & physics at Columbia University and author of several science books (including The Elegant Universe, and The Hidden Reality); and Tracy Day, a four-time National News Emmy Award-winning journalist, who has produced live and documentary programming for the nation’s preeminent television news divisions. Greene now serves as Chairman of the Science Festival Foundation, and Day is CEO of the World Science Festival.[2]

The events at the World Science Festival are rooted in science, but also conform to the production standards of professional TV and live theatrical events.

Board of Directors

The Founding Benefactors are Simons Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the John Templeton Foundation.[3]

Inaugural Festival

The inaugural World Science Festival took place from May 28 to June 1, 2008, at 22 venues throughout New York City. Hailed a “new cultural institution,” by The New York Times, the Festival included 46 events, a street fair and, on its first day, the one-day World Science Summit at Columbia University. Of the 150+ participants, speakers and performers 11 Nobel Prize winners. Venues included the American Museum of Natural History, Abyssinian Baptist Church, and the NYU Skirball Center. Total audience numbered more than 120,000.[4]

World Science Festival in New York City

Over the past 9 festivals, WSF has drawn more than a million and a half visitors, with millions more viewing programs online. Programs include discussions, debates, theatrical works, interactive explorations, musical performances, intimate salons, and major outdoor experiences in parks, museums, galleries and performing arts venues across New York City. A full program list can be found on the WSF official website.

Past Participants

World Science Festival participants have included Alan Alda, Joshua Bell, Chuck Close, Glenn Close, Sylvia Earle, Philip Glass, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Stephen Hawking, John Hockenberry, Bill T. Jones, Charlie Kaufman, Mary-Claire King, Eric Lander, Richard Leakey, John Lithgow, Yo-Yo Ma, Bobby McFerrin, Oliver Sacks, Liev Schreiber, Anna Deavere Smith, Julie Taymor, E.O. Wilson, and Nobel Laureates David Baltimore, Steven Chu, David Gross, Eric Kandel, Dudley R. Herschbach, Roald Hoffmann, Leon Lederman, Paul Nurse, John C. Mather, Saul Perlmutter, Adam Riess, F. Sherwood Rowland, Horst Störmer, Jack W. Szostak, Gerard ‘t Hooft, Harold Varmus, James Watson, Steven Weinberg, Carl Wieman, and Frank Wilczek, among many others. The full list of participants can be found on the WSF official website.

References

  1. ↑ Non-profit status and chairman position from the foundation's 990-EZ form for 2006, accessible online via GuideStar, GuideStar USA, Inc., 2008, retrieved 2008-06-11. Current board of directors from World Science Festival (April 2008), Board of directors, Science Festival Foundation, archived from the original on June 7, 2008, retrieved 2008-06-08
  2. ↑ Cf. Musser, George (April 25, 2008), "A Science Fête Project: A Q&A with Brian Greene", Scientific American, retrieved 2008-11-24
  3. ↑ "Sponsors and Partners - World Science Festival - June 1-5, 2016 - New York City". World Science Festival - June 1-5, 2016 - New York City. Retrieved 2016-06-20.
  4. ↑ Venues and event numbers: Overbye, Dennis (June 3, 2008b), "An Overflowing Five-Day Banquet of Science and Its Meanings", New York Times, retrieved 2008-06-05. Summit: Timmer, John (May 28, 2008b), "First Kavli Prize winners in new fields of science announced", Ars Technica, retrieved 2008-06-05. Attendance: Souccar, Miriam (June 6, 2008), "City's Science Festival attracts record numbers", Crain's New York Business, retrieved 2008-06-06
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