Science Café

EUTOPIA_HEALTH’s Science Cafés are open, informal conversations where researchers, practitioners, students, and citizens explore pressing health questions together. They foster dialogue across disciplines and make cutting-edge research accessible to wider publics.

Our full programme of upcoming Science Cafés — including thematic sessions hosted across the alliance — will be published shortly. In the meantime, you can explore the past and ongoing activities that contribute to this public-engagement mission under the project’s Actions section.

Past Science Cafés

Science Café in Lisbon dedicated to Orange December: Skin cancer awareness and prevention (2025)

On 15 December 2025, a Science Café dedicated exclusively to skin cancer was held in a café in Lisbon, with a particular focus on awareness and prevention. In an informal setting, dermatologist and researcher at NOVA Medical School Ana Brasileiro presented key national data, the warning signs that should keep us alert, and preventive measures associated with what is considered one of the most prevalent types of cancer in Portugal. 

This was followed by a presentation of the various initiatives of the Ciência + Cidadã programme by its coordinator at ITQB NOVA, Maria João Leão. This provided the framework for introducing the Sombra para Todxs (Shade for Everyone) project: Magda Fonseca, from the EVITA association – Cancro Hereditário, and Nuno Charneca, from InovLabs, showed not only epidemiological data, but also identified risk factors, leaving a clear message: “If in doubt, consult a dermatologist. Early diagnosis can save lives”.  

The session concluded with a presentation by the project ambassadors, a group of students from Quinta do Marquês Secondary School in Oeiras, who demonstrated some of the equipment developed to raise awareness of the risks among the population and to promote the adoption of effective preventive measures.    

EUTOPIA_HEALTH Science Cafe in Ljubljana: Caring for drinking water is common concern for all (2025)

The Science Cafe ‘What's in our glasses’ hosted by the University of Ljubljana on September 10 2025 was the second in a series of public events organised by the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project, which aims to bring science closer to citizens and industry by involving the public in research processes and encouraging cooperation between academic institutions, companies and communities. The project seeks to build bridges between scientific knowledge and the real needs of people and industry in order to accelerate the application of innovation and improve the quality of life in society. 

At the Science Cafe event, which aimed to transfer knowledge about drinking water from academia to the public, we explored how drinking water is produced, the factors that influence it, and how individuals can improve water quality. We also discussed how to better inform the public about the state of their local drinking water.

Prof. Dr. Barbara Hribar Lee and Prof. Dr. Alenka Žgajnar Gotvajn (UL FKKT) presented the technological process of drinking water preparation in their introductory lecture Clean Water: From Natural Resource to Engineering Product. They pointed out that although the right to water is enshrined in numerous documents, its provision also depends on industry and agriculture: the biggest challenge today is micro-pollutants and their timely detection.  

Among the micropollutants in drinking water, plastic certainly stands out as the material most closely associated with the Anthropocene epoch. Dr. Manca Kovač Viršek from National Institute for Biology (NIB) has been researching microplastics for several years and highlighted the large quantities of water that need to be examined for microplastic analysis in a given water area as a major challenge of this research.  

Dr. Brigita Jamnik, director of VOKA Snaga, the company responsible for the largest drinking water area in Slovenia, presented the activities that the company carries out to ensure drinking water in Ljubljana and some nearby towns. The company ensures the quality of drinking water through its own controls, while also being subject to external controls by the National Laboratory for Health, Environment and Food (NZLOH).   

Leon Mislej from the Youth for Climate Justice Association presented water conservation from the perspective of individual measures that each person can take to improve water quality in their environment, with advocacy also playing an important role.   

Second EUTOPIA_HEALTH Science Café in Cluj-Napoca: Natural intelligence and artificial intelligence - Current perspectives in neuroscience and their connection to AI (2025)

The second edition of the Science Café at Babeș-Bolyai University was successfully held on Friday, 21 November, bringing together 50 participants for an engaging evening dedicated to exploring the dynamic and increasingly influential dialogue between neuroscience and artificial intelligence. The event provided an open, informal setting that encouraged discussion, curiosity, and critical reflection on how these two rapidly evolving fields inform and shape one another.

The discussion was led by UBB researchers Mária Ercsey-Ravasz, Andrei Miu, and Raul Mureșan, who guided the audience through a multidisciplinary conversation centred on the relationship between the human brain and machine intelligence. Drawing on their expertise, the speakers highlighted how advances in neuroscience contribute to a deeper understanding of natural cognition, perception, and decision-making, while simultaneously inspiring the development of more efficient and adaptive artificial intelligence systems.

Throughout the event, participants were invited to reflect on a series of fundamental and timely questions, including: What are the core objectives and methods of contemporary neuroscience? How has artificial intelligence evolved from early computational models to today’s sophisticated learning systems? What significant discoveries about brain function have emerged over the past decade? Additionally, the discussion addressed how progress in one domain can act as a catalyst for innovation in the other, accelerating both scientific discovery and technological development.

The interactive format of the Science Café encouraged active participation from the audience, fostering a vibrant exchange of ideas and perspectives. Attendees had the opportunity to engage directly with the researchers, ask questions, and contribute their own viewpoints, resulting in a rich and stimulating dialogue. Overall, the event sparked curiosity, broadened understanding, and offered fresh insights into the challenges and opportunities arising at the intersection of neuroscience and artificial intelligence, while also highlighting promising directions for future interdisciplinary research and collaboration.

EUTOPIA_HEALTH Science Cafe: Science in Ljubljana—talking about sleep (2024)

On World Mental Health Day, 10 October, 2024, the University of Ljubljana organised a Science Cafe on the topic of sleep in the lounge of the University Rehabilitation Institute Soča (URI Soča). Sleep disorders in general are a serious public health problem as they increase the risk of chronic diseases, reduce quality of life and negatively affect productivity and safety. The event, which is part of the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project, brought together parents of children with developmental disabilities, professional staff from the URI Soča and researchers from the Department of Public Health at the Medical Faculty of the University of Ljubljana (MF UL).

Petra Wraber, Dr. Med., a specialist in physical and rehabilitation medicine, presented how poor sleep affects children and their parents, as well as the first results of a sleep study being conducted at the URI Soča. Sleep is one of the most important aspects of daily functioning and affects practically all other aspects of life. The results of the study obtained so far show that poor sleep quality is an important problem for children and parents treated at URI Soca, which is why Petra Wraber stressed the need for further research on this topic and for the urgent inclusion of sleep monitoring in rehabilitation programmes.

Karin Bojc from the University of Ljubljana presented the principles and essence of citizen science. Citizen science is a part of the scientific process that aims to involve the public more in the development of science and in the search for answers to research questions. It allows citizens to actively participate in data collection, analysis and the solution design, promoting both a better understanding of science and closer collaboration between scientists and society.

Parents of children with developmental disabilities highlighted the practices they have adopted to improve the quality of their own sleep and their children's sleep, as well as the main problems with sleep they face during the rehabilitation of their children. Other parents as well as URI Soča professionals helped them find with solutions and explanations.

Parents of children have pointed out that this type of event helps them to cope more easily with everyday sleep-related problems, as they can get a direct answer to questions they otherwise consider too trivial to be addressed scientifically in reviews and treatments. The professional staff of URI Soča and the researchers from the Department of Public Health of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ljubljana highlighted as an advantage, in particular, a better understanding of the everyday problems of parents of children with developmental disabilities, which helps them to tailor rehabilitation programmes and other policies. According to Dr. Katja Groleger Sršen, Head of the Department for Children's Rehabilitation at URI Soča and researcher at the Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine at the MF UL, such events contribute significantly to better understanding of every-day issues parents face because "when you meet parents in a more relaxed atmosphere, they also open up more, so this kind of socialising brings significantly different information than formal examinations and discussions."

EUTOPIA_HEALTH Science Café in Oeiras, Lisbon: Citizen Science Project “SeaMic” Presented on National Sea Day (2024)

On November 16, 2024 the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project hosted its first Science Café in Oeiras, Lisbon, Portugal, as part of the National Sea Day celebrations. This engaging event focused on the intersection of environment, health and art, featuring the SeaMic project, a Citizen Science initiative launched by NOVA University Lisbon in collaboration with ITQB and the Municipality of Oeiras.

Portugal's stunning coastline attracts visitors year-round, thanks to its pleasant weather. However, beaches are occasionally closed due to microbiological contamination of seawater, which poses significant health risks to bathers.

The SeaMic presentation began with an overview of the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project by Dr. Francisca Melo Fonseca from the Rectorate of NOVA University Lisbon, followed by a presentation from Dr. Catarina Pimentel from the Yeast Molecular Biology Laboratory at ITQB NOVA. Dr. Pimentel highlighted a critical issue: the time it takes for current water quality tests to yield results: 48 hours. By the time the results are in, people may have already been in contact with contaminated water. At the same time, the water may already be clean and, in reality, the beach should have been closed two days before. The SeaMic project aims to tackle this challenge by developing a rapid test for monitoring seawater quality in real time.

Dr. Pimentel explained the methodology behind the project and invited Oeiras residents to participate by assisting with seawater collection, monitoring the development of tests in the laboratory environment and, in the future, carrying out the tests on the beach. The audience was captivated by the potential impact of SeaMic, sparking a lively Q&A session where attendees discussed existing testing methods, health risks, and the influence of environmental changes on coastal living.

The event concluded with a demonstration of the test prototype by Dr. Catarina Amaral, also from the Yeast Molecular Biology Laboratory at ITQB NOVA, and an open invitation for citizens to join the project as citizen scientists. Attendees also enjoyed a sustainable tasting featuring Sorghum Cake, Chícharo Pastries, and Carcavelos wine from Villa Oeiras, fostering a convivial atmosphere where science, community, and sustainability came together.

The success of the first EUTOPIA_HEALTH Science Café, which brought together around 50 participants, highlights the vital role of collaborative efforts in tackling pressing environmental and health challenges. By fostering meaningful dialogue and engagement, the event bridged the gap between researchers and citizens, inspiring collective action for a healthier future.

First Science Cafe in Cluj-Napoca: Shedding Light on Radon – The Silent Threat in the Air We Breathe (2024)

On October 25, 2024, the EUTOPIA_HEALTH project hosted its inaugural Science Cafe in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, fostering community engagement and raising awareness about a frequently neglected public health issue: radon exposure. At Babeș-Bolyai University, this event brought together researchers from the Faculty of Biology and Geology and the Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, who delivered an enlightening session titled “The Traps in the Air We Breathe: Radon.”

The researchers, actively engaged in advanced work on radon detection, guided the audience through the complexities of this insidious gas. Radon, a naturally occurring radioactive element, is known to accumulate in confined spaces such as homes and offices, often going unnoticed. Prolonged radon exposure can pose significant health risks, with lung cancer being a primary concern associated with elevated levels. The researchers emphasised radon’s stealthy nature, highlighting how it can accumulate to hazardous concentrations without detection.

A key highlight of the evening was the unveiling of the Radon Map of Romania, which visually represented radon concentrations across various regions. This map allowed participants to comprehend the local and national impact of radon, providing context regarding the dangers in their own environments. Following this, an engaging demonstration offered a practical approach to radon detection, showcasing simple, cost-effective tools for measuring radon levels in indoor spaces.

Dr. Kinga Hening, representing the Radon Test Laboratory (LiRaCC), delivered an informative presentation on the processes involved in radon screening and measuring, including potential mitigation strategies. Her insights underscored the significance of regular monitoring, particularly in regions known for higher radon levels, and outlined actions that homeowners and businesses can take to decrease radon exposure.

Additionally, Assistant Professor Valentin-Florian Rauca from the Department of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology thoroughly examined the relationship between radon exposure and lung cancer. His research illustrated how radon particles, when inhaled, can settle in the respiratory tract, potentially resulting in cellular mutations and, ultimately, cancer. Rauca’s presentation detailed the molecular interactions underlying radon-related health risks, stressing the critical need for early detection.

A dynamic Q&A session concluded the evening, allowing attendees to explore their concerns and curiosities. Participants posed questions on topics ranging from local radon levels to the broader health implications of radon exposure, reflecting the community’s genuine interest in understanding and addressing this health hazard.

As Romania continues to map and monitor radon levels, initiatives like this Science Cafe empower individuals with knowledge, resources, and solutions to protect their health and wellbeing.

More events, recordings, and materials will be added soon.

For updates, please visit the main project page: https://health.eutopia-university.eu