This weekend saw Liverpool’s World Museum hosting a special event entitled How the Body Works devised by the University of Liverpool. It was supported by the Wellcome Trust Liverpool Glasgow Centre for Global Health Research (WTCGHR) and LSTM in the staging of a supplementary event – Mission Malaria!
The WTCGHR and LSTM’s Adriana Adolfi and Nelson Grisales ran various activities for children and visitors of all ages and around 1000 people visited the exhibit throughout the day. Through hands-on activities, they demonstrated how malaria transfers from mosquitoes to humans and how the parasite Plasmodium spp., which causes the disease, affects the human body.
The younger visitors were kept busy with colouring and crafts and as the body of their work increased it became part of the exhibition as it was displayed by the team. There was also an interactive computer game for children and adults about how to identify malaria in a diagnostic laboratory.
Nelson and Adriana both found the day very enjoyable. Adriana, a PhD student, is a member of LSTM’s STEM ambassador’s team and was delighted with the response from the public. She said: “We were busy throughout the day and everyone seemed very engaged with the exhibit, especially the children. It gave us an opportunity to explain a little more about the role that LSTM is playing in understanding and tackling malaria throughout the world.”
This event was part of LSTM’s public engagement strategy. If any other organisation is interested in working with LSTM in public engagement events, please contact Public Engagement Manager Elli Wright.