TESTIMONIALS
Here, leaders, educators, and community members share their support for this vital project. These endorsements highlight the NCSC's importance in shaping a scientifically literate and innovative future, emphasising the need for a dedicated science centre to inspire the next generation in Dublin.
Industry Support
Professor William Campbell, Nobel Prize Winner
‘I rejoice in the creation of the National Children's Science Centre. Growing up in a small rural Irish country town, I heard and saw nothing of science until I was years old. Long may it flourish.’
Sir Jony Ive
Former Apple chief designer, Chancellor of Royal College of Art
‘Curiosity and inquisitiveness always precede a significant idea and significant ideas can change the world.’
Dara O'Briain
Broadcaster and Comedian
‘Dublin is long overdue a centre for science and wonder like we see in cities all over the world. It would be about Space, about biology, about volcanoes and dinosaurs. It would be a place where we can get young minds, engage them, inspire them and finally put the sciences on the same footing in Ireland as literature, music and the arts. So, if you’ll excuse the pun, it’s about time.’
Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Astrophysicist, Discoverer of Radio Pulsars
‘COVID has shown us how important science is - to control pandemics, to enable us to communicate with each other. Science is a 'must' for every young person today, and increasingly in the future. The National Children's Science Centre will excite interest in science and aid understanding of it.’
Professor Luke O’Neill Trinity College
‘If Dublin really is to be the city of the future, we need a science centre for our children, to inspire future generations to be world leaders, in a world where science will be needed more than ever, and where scientific literacy will be essential to cope with the challenges ahead…….’
The Edge
Musician and Activist
‘An Interactive Science Centre is essential to the development of a society moving forward at warp speed. We need to open the door to the creative thinkers of the future.’
Government Support
Mr. Bertie Ahern
Mr. Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach, unveiled a model and architectural design for Exploration Station (now known as the National Children’s Science Centre) at the Office of Public Works.
““This key project within the Programme for Government heralds a new era in our appreciation of science and technology. It will be the departure point for a voyage of discovery for young people and visitors of all ages. As Ireland’s first purpose-built interactive science centre, its mission will be to inspire a lifelong passion for discovery and innovation. It will do this by engaging young minds with a range of interactive exhibits and programmes demonstrating the relevant role of science in our lives”
February 5, 2003
Ms. Mary Harney
Ms Mary Harney, thenTánaiste, announced that Ireland was to get its first ever interactive learning centre.
“This is a huge step forward in raising the levels of awareness of science for our young people.… It is a unique initiative which has the potential to do more for the promotion and teaching of science than anything else previously undertaken in Ireland.… It will be an educational and outreach centre for teachers and pupils with interactive exhibits, experiments and demonstrations designed and developed to complement the National Curriculum. It is intended to show that learning about science can be a practical, interesting and fun experience."
18th December 2003
Ms. Mary Coughlan
Ms. Mary Coughlan, then Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment to Mr. Dermot Ahern (then Minister for Justice, Equality & Law Reform):
“I would like to assure you that my Department is continuing to engage with OPW, Exploration Station [now the National Children's Science Centre] and other interested parties with a view to identifying any potential means to activate this important project.”
17th July 2009
Dr. Martin Mansergh
Dr. Martin Mansergh, then Minister of State at the Department of Finance with special responsibility for the OPW.
“[The National Children's Science Centre] would be centrepiece of Dublin’s participation in the European Year of Science 2012 … In this context, it was intended that my office would facilitate the provision of the building to house Exploration Station [The NCSC]."
31st July 2009
Mr. Maurice Buckley
Maurice Buckley, Chair of the OPW:
“We have been requested to prepare a more extensive memo for Government in conjunction with our colleagues in the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. I see this as a very positive development as we will now be seeking both a political endorsement of the project and also some direction on State involvement in the operation of the Centre once built.”
20th Feb 2018
Joint Oireachtas Committee
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Further and Higher Education and Research, Innovation and Science
"The National Children’s Science Centre, in gestation for many years, should be opened as a matter of urgent national priority. It will send out a message that Ireland is very serious about science education for Primary and Post Primary students.” July 2023
