Inspirefest 2019 commenced on Thursday May 16th at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre and the DCU Water Institute exhibition was very well received by attendees right from the beginning of this spectacular event. Inspirefest is an annual event held with the objective of encouraging interest in STEM fields, but holds the primary objective of inspiring those who in the minority in STEM fields to follow their dreams and not fall victim to old expectations of an outdated society.
DCU were global sponsors of the event and the Water Institute was strategically part of the exhibition along with all of the other DCU faculties. The Water Institute received great interest from delegates from all over the world. DCU Water Institute had the Colisense apparatus on display and an accompanying microscope displaying a glass slide containing a strand of E.coli. Colisense is an innovative sensor designed to indicate the presence of E.coli in a water sample in 75 minutes as opposed to most alternative incubation and plating methods in a laboratory. Attendees had kind and encouraging words for the DCU Water Institute and the research it undertakes as its theme was “Safe, Secure Water for all”.
Encouraging and intellectual discussions were also enjoyed by attendees from companies like Symantec, Janssen Pharmaceutical and Focus Ireland, young STEM bloggers, secondary school students with future prospects of being DCU science students, and by graduated DCU science students of years gone by who have followed their path in success in their respective STEM field. The DCU Water Institute would like to thank everyone who visited the stand and hopes they can follow them @DCUwater for updates on future research.
In picture: Molly Williams PhD student from the Water Institute