Inspiring Australia: Science engagement in Australia

Inspiring Australia contributes to the government’s vision to engage all Australians with science.

Inspiring Australia science engagement activities are connecting with people nationwide to:

• build an awareness and appreciation of science
• celebrate the excitement of science and scientific discovery
• enhance the focus on capability and skills
• improve science communication skills

Our department:

• administers grants and prizes to support community-wide participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
• facilitates national networks to enable regional engagement in science
• manages National Science Week, Australia’s largest celebration of science and technology

Inspiring Australia Science Engagement Programme

We administer the Inspiring Australia Science Engagement Programme which provides grants and prizes to eligible schools, organisations and individuals.

Read the program objectives, guidelines and eligibility information for the each of the measures on Business.gov.au.

There are 5 measures:

• National Science Week Grants: supports individuals and organisations to deliver science engagement activities during National Science Week.
• Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science: annual awards outstanding achievement in science and science teaching.
• Maker Projects: Community STEM Engagement Grants: supports collaborative initiatives that deliver interactive and hands-on STEM-related activities to youth under 18 years of age.
• Citizen Science Grants: supports community participation in scientific research projects that have a national impact.
• Sponsorship Grants for Student Science Engagement and International Competitions: supports students under 18 years of age to participate in science engagement activities.

Early work informing Inspiring Australia

Inspiring Australia started in 2009. The initiative is informed by earlier work to identify best practice approaches for science engagement in Australia.

Read key insights in these publications:

• Inspiring Australia: a national strategy for engagement with the sciences [1MB PDF] [333KB DOCX].
• Framework of Principles for Science Communication Initiatives [83KB PDF] [23KB DOCX]: this supports a consistent approach to policy and program design to achieve goals.
• Final reports from the Expert Working Groups: these explored how science communities can work together to improve science engagement.
• Inspiring Industry to Inspire Australia—Business and Science Outreach [278KB PDF] [76KB DOCX]: short case studies on how industry is inspiring Australia to think about science.

Read more

• Find out about Inspiring Australia Managers in your state or territory.
• Access resources for communicating science and promoting STEM engagement.
• Find out about annual activities to celebrate science on the National Science Week website.

Contact us

Email Inspiring.Australia@questacon.edu.au