2025 events
Organised by the Impact Funding Team, the ESRC Festival of Social Science has run at the University of Southampton since 2019. Each festival year has focused on a different theme and has produced a wide variety of events.
This year's theme is 'Our Working Lives'. With last year's festival theme being 'Our Digital Lives'.
AI + Imagination: Stories For A Greener Planet
Age: Children & families
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Bindi Shah, Associate Professor in Sociology, Dr Chiying Lam, Lecturer in Community Music & Social Justice, Dr Tuyen Nguyen, Lecturer in AI and social human-robot interactions, all at Southampton University
Date and Time (UK Time):28/10/2025 10:30 - 12:00
BIPC Meeting Hub, Central Library, Civic Centre, Southampton, SO14 7LW
Summary
Join us for a free 90-minute creative workshop at Southampton Central Library, where children will explore climate action through storytelling and new technologies. The session includes guided story writing using Generative AI, image creation, and a live reading of each story by our friendly robot Buddy. Timings include short introductions to climate themes and storywriting, followed by hands-on creative activities on a laptop and a wrap-up with feedback. Families can receive a digital copy of their child's story after the event. No prior experience needed-just imagination and curiosity!
Description
This creative workshop invites children and families to explore climate action through storytelling and new technologies. Participants will reflect on environmental change by imagining characters and habitats, then use Generative AI tools to write and enhance their stories. The session introduces children to digital tools they may not have encountered before-helping build confidence and curiosity in a fun, inclusive setting. A highlight of the event is hearing their stories read aloud by Buddy, our friendly story-reading robot. Families will leave with a better understanding of how creativity and technology can come together to inspire climate action and learning-and a story to take home and share.
AI + Imagination: Stories For A Greener Planet
Be Flood Ready: Mapping, Managing, Responding
Age: Young People
Type: Other
Host: Sien van der Plank, environmental human geographer at the University of Southampton Lily Sharp, PhD student
Date and Time (UK Time):22/10/2025 15:30 - 18:00
Room 1061, Building 44, University Rd, Southampton SO17 1BJ
This event can be booked by secondary school teachers, by emailing morethanmaps@soton.ac.uk with student and staff numbers.
Summary
This two-part workshop provides school students with skills to create a map with key flood information about Southampton, and to engage in critical game play to explore flood adaptation. In Workshop 1, students will create a basic Story Map using ArcGIS Online with key information about flood risk, warnings, and preparedness advice in Southampton. Workshop 2 will focus on how people experience and respond to flooding, using critical climate games to tackle this challenging topic. The workshops will be highly interactive, with the emphasis on students learning mapping and critical thinking skills.
Description
We hear about flooding in the media regularly, whether in Southampton, elsewhere in England, or abroad. At this event, we invite you to learn geospatial and human research methods to learn more about past flooding to be better prepared for future flood events.
Be Flood Ready: Mapping, Managing, Responding
Neurodiverse Youth: Bridging Minds And Workplaces
Age: This event is designed to specifically engage with young people, of a post-compulsory education age, particularly with neurodiversity. The event is inclusive and there is no expectation that people will have received a formal diagnosis. This event can also be attractive to parents or carers who have young people joining workplaces, including apprenticeship, and who are looking for ways to support them in making this important transition. We will also encourage the participation of employers who needs to learn how to support neurodiverse employees
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Trang Gardner Vu and Jane Parry are leading the event. Co-organised with Dr Brian Hracs, School of Geography and Environmental Science; Dr Yumei Yang, Business School, Bournemouth University, Dr Quynh Nguyen, Business School, Bournemouth University
Date and Time (UK Time):07/11/2025 11:00 - 14:30
October Books, 189 Portswood Rd, Portswood, Southampton SO17 2NF
Free
Summary
An interactive, in-person workshop designed for neurodivergent young people, their parents, and carers, exploring how neurodiversity is experienced in work and higher education. The event includes a 30-minute storytelling session where participants can share personal experiences, followed by a one-hour panel discussion featuring neurodivergent voices and expert speakers. After a lunch break, attendees will take part in a 45-minute interactive exercise to co-design inclusive workplaces. The workshop offers a welcoming space for open conversation, practical insights, and collaborative learning.
Description
Discover the realities of neurodiversity in the workplace and higher education through lived experience, expert insight, and hands-on activities. This in-person workshop explores challenges like the autism pay gap, access to support, and building inclusive environments.
Issues to discuss might include:
a. Access to Work scheme - grant for practice support at work, mental health support, support with job interviews;
b. The legal position regarding diagnosis/pre-diagnosis and getting workplace support;
c. Identifying additional needs and what reasonable adjustments around neurodiversity might look like (for both young people and employers);
d. Building a self-supporting network.
Neurodiverse Youth: Bridging Minds And Workplaces
AI And The Future Of (good) Work
Age: All
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Dr Joe Atkinson, Associate Professor of Employment Law, University of Southampton
Date and Time (UK Time):24/10/2025 18:00 - 19:30
Room 2063/2065, Sir James Matthews Building, 157-187 Above Bar Street, Southampton, SO14 7NN
Free
Summary
Join us to consider how AI is changing the future of work. The event will feature expert presentations, an open Q&A, and a collaborative discussion on the steps needed to secure a fair and decent future of work. We'll conclude with refreshments and networking opportunities, offering space for reflection and connection.
Description
Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming part of our everyday lives. This is resulting in the workplace being transformed, as AI technologies are reshaping how jobs are carried out, monitored, and accessed. As a result of this widespread adoption, principles of good work are being challenged. Additionally, the benefits of these technologies are not spread evenly across the UK.
In this event, leading experts will highlight the latest trends in how AI is affecting workers' rights, well-being, and productivity. Together we'll explore how adoption of these technologies is unfolding both nationally and here in Southampton, and discuss what can be done to ensure everyone has access to good work.
AI And The Future Of (good) Work
AI + Imagination: Stories For A Greener Planet
Age: Children & families
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Bindi Shah, Associate Professor in Sociology, Dr Chiying Lam, Lecturer in Community Music & Social Justice, Dr Tuyen Nguyen, Lecturer in AI and social human-robot interactions, all at Southampton University
Date and Time (UK Time):28/10/2025 13:30 - 15:00
BIPC Meeting Hub, Central Library, Civic Centre, Southampton, SO14 7LW
Free
Summary
Join us for a free 90-minute creative workshop at Southampton Central Library, where children will explore climate action through storytelling and new technologies. The session includes guided story writing using Generative AI, image creation, and a live reading of each story by our friendly robot Buddy. Timings include short introductions to climate themes and storywriting, followed by hands-on creative activities on a laptop and a wrap-up with feedback. Families can receive a digital copy of their child's story after the event. No prior experience needed-just imagination and curiosity!
Description
This creative workshop invites children and families to explore climate action through storytelling and new technologies. Participants will reflect on environmental change by imagining characters and habitats, then use Generative AI tools to write and enhance their stories. The session introduces children to digital tools they may not have encountered before-helping build confidence and curiosity in a fun, inclusive setting. A highlight of the event is hearing their stories read aloud by Buddy, our friendly story-reading robot. Families will leave with a better understanding of how creativity and technology can come together to inspire climate action and learning-and a story to take home and share.
AI + Imagination: Stories For A Greener Planet
Work In A Changing World
Age: Workshops are designed for students aged 16-18 at the Connie Rothman Learning Trust. The public screening will be of interest to anyone curious about how young people imagine the future of work.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Nick Gray, The Media School, Bournemouth University
Date and Time (UK Time):23/10/2025 11:00 - 16:00
24/10/2025 11:00 - 16:00
Workshops at Connie Rothman Learning Trust, Christchurch, Dorset. Screening location TBC.
Free
Summary
Students from the Connie Rothman Learning Trust will take part in two interactive filmmaking workshops led by staff from Bournemouth University's Faculty of Media & Communication. Over the course of the sessions, they will use AI tools to generate images of the future world of work and their own place within it. These images will inspire discussion, reflection, and short films structured around both the opportunities and challenges that AI might bring to working life.
The workshops are designed to be creative and inclusive, helping students to develop media and storytelling skills while building confidence in expressing their ideas. Those who wish to share their work will be invited to take part in a screening, where the films will be showcased to a wider audience.
Description
This event encourages young people to think critically about the future of work in an AI-driven world. Through film and digital storytelling, they will reflect on both the benefits and risks of emerging technologies, while imagining how their own working lives may take shape.
The project highlights the voices of students in a specialist education environment, providing a supportive space for creativity, collaboration, and future-facing reflection.
Work In A Changing World
Fast Cash, Hidden Costs: The Matched Betting Dilemma
Age: Young people aged 16-25 not in higher education, and working adults aged 25 and over.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: This event is run by the Bournemouth University Gambling Research Group. Dr Reece Bush-Evans, Senior Lecturer in Psychology Dr Elvira Bolat, Associate Professor in Digital Marketing Dr Emily Arden Close, Principal Academic in Psychology Dr Ruijie Wang, Senior Lecturer in Psychology Dr Constantina Panourgia, Principal Academic in Psychology Professor John McAlaney, Professor in Psychology
Date and Time (UK Time):02/11/2025 11:00 - 15:00
Gather, Ground Floor, The Dolphin Centre, Poole, Dorset BH15 1SZ
Free
Summary
This interactive exhibition will explore the realities of matched betting and the risks that can lie behind promises of "risk-free" income. Visitors can take part in drop-in activities at any point during the day, including hands-on tasks, visual data displays, myth-busting exercises, and lived experience stories.
Short non-technical talks will also run throughout the day (repeated hourly), explaining what matched betting is, why it's becoming more popular, and what research tells us about its potential harms. The space is designed to be informal and supportive, encouraging open discussion rather than a lecture-style atmosphere.
Description
Matched betting is often advertised as a "safe side hustle" for making quick money online. But is it really as risk-free and profitable as it seems?
This event looks at how financial pressures, insecure work, and the rise of hustle culture are pushing people - especially young adults - towards options like matched betting. While it may appear attractive, research highlights a range of hidden costs, from time pressures and mental fatigue to increased exposure to gambling advertising, harmful behaviours, and financial instability.
Through interactive activities, short talks, and real-life stories, this event challenges common misconceptions about matched betting and invites attendees to reflect on what "safe" really means in a digital world full of side hustle hype.
No Booking Required!
Fast Cash, Hidden Costs: The Matched Betting Dilemma
Deepfake Deep Dive: Perspectives From Law, Policy, Technology And Practice
Age: Legal practitioners, policymakers, creative industry professionals, and anyone curious about how deepfake AI affect society.
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Professor Dinusha Mendis, Professor of Intellectual Property & Innovation Law and Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property, Policy & Management (CIPPM), Bournemouth University.
Date and Time (UK Time):04/11/2025 12:00 - 13:15
Online
Free
Summary
Join a 45-minute panel discussion followed by an open Q&A. The panel will bring together voices from law, technology, and industry (guest speakers TBC) to explore the challenges and opportunities of deepfake technology.
Description
Deepfake AI is used to create convincing images, audio and video hoaxes and is a portmanteau of 'deep learning' and 'fake'. It is reshaping how we create, share, and protect content and raises important questions for intellectual property law, the creative industries, and society at large. How can we balance protecting creators and performers with encouraging the development of synthetic content?
This event will highlight different perspectives from law, policy, technology, and practice, with a focus on the UK's current approach to AI. The UK is yet to legislate in the area of deepfake AI, which leaves open several questions for the creative, cultural industries as well as society. This event will address the current gaps and provide insights from different sectors in highlighting ways in which we can tackle the growing issue of deepfakes.
The session will conclude with reflections on what the future might hold for deepfakes, regulation, and AI technologies more broadly.
Deepfake Deep Dive: Perspectives From Law, Policy, Technology And Practice
Digital Futures For All: Inclusion, Skills, And Employability
Age: Public sector and charity professionals responsible for training, employability support, or improving access to work.
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Dr Phil Wilkinson, Researcher-in-Residence, Digital Skills Hub Dr Nick Gray, Lecturer in Community Media, Bournemouth University Kaoutar Addi, Partnership and Project Lead, Digital Skills Hub Rachel Doe, Project Manager, Bournemouth Christchurch Poole (BCP) Council Andy Merchant, Digital Skills Trainer, Bournemouth Churches Housing Association (BCHA)
Date and Time (UK Time):05/11/2025 18:00 - 19:30
Digital Skills Hub, 30-32 Old Christchurch Road, Boscombe, BH1 4BT
Free
Summary
This session begins with a short retrospective talk looking back at three years of the Digital Skills Hub - working at the front lines of digital inclusion. This includes a 45-minute panel discussion and Q&A with both Academic Experts and Practitioners who will share both research insights and real-world experience of engaging the public in digital skills programme.
Description
Digital skills are essential for employability, inclusion, and everyday life. Yet many people face barriers when it comes to accessing or taking part in training. This event will explore practical strategies for making digital futures accessible to all, with a focus on public sector and community contexts.
The panel will discuss:
How to reach and motivate diverse groups to take part in training
Designing programmes that are inclusive, engaging, and accessible
Framing and promoting digital skills in ways that encourage uptake
Demonstrating the value of training by linking skills to employability outcomes
Overcoming barriers such as low confidence, perceived irrelevance, and access issues
By drawing on research and frontline experience, the session will provide ideas and approaches to support more effective and inclusive digital skills initiatives.
Digital Futures For All: Inclusion, Skills, And Employability
Through A Child's Eyes: Understanding Childhood Drowning In Bangladesh
Age: Young People (16-25); Adults (over 25); Of particular interest to People interested in international development, health promotion, drowning prevention or human-centred design
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen (Bournemouth University), PI John Powell MBE (Bournemouth University), Senior Lecturer Dr. Yonghun Lim (Bournemouth University), Senior Lecturer Tom Mecrow (Royal National Lifeboat Institution, RNLI), Research Lead Shafkat Hussain (Bournemouth University), PhD student on the Sonamoni project
Date and Time (UK Time):08/11/2025 10:00 - 13:00
Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) College Waterfront Suite, West Quay Road, Poole, BH15 1HZ
Free
Summary
This event introduces Sonamoni, a global research project tackling one of the most serious but least recognised threats to children in rural Bangladesh: drowning. This interdisciplinary research is funded by the NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research).
Join us for an interactive session starting with a short presentation about the project, followed by a chance to step inside a specially created Virtual Reality (VR) environment. Developed with Dreamerz Lab in Bangladesh, the VR gives both child and adult perspectives of rural village life, showing how water surrounds homes and why very young children are so vulnerable.
The event will finish with a discussion and Q&A, giving you the opportunity to explore the research in more depth and share your thoughts with the panel.
Description
Drowning is the leading cause of death for children aged 6 -24 months in Bangladesh, yet it rarely receives the same attention as other global health issues. The Sonamoni project, led by Bournemouth University and the University of Southampton in collaboration with partners in Bangladesh, Uganda, and the UK is developing practical, community-based solutions to reduce drowning among 6 - 24 months children.
The research also looks at how prevention measures affect the daily lives of local women, shaping their ability to work and support their families. By combining social science, health research, and human-centred design, the project highlights the power of interdisciplinary teams to make a difference in global health. This research is funded by UK-Aid/NIHR.
Through A Child's Eyes: Understanding Childhood Drowning In Bangladesh
The Pest Confessional
Age: Adults
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Hannah Fair, Lecturer in Human Geography at the University of Southampton.
Date and Time (UK Time):08/11/2025 10:30 - 16:00
Sir James Matthews Building 157-187 Above Bar Street Southampton SO14 7NN
FREE
Summary
Step into a private, curtained space for a 10-20 minute one-on-one experience exploring the everyday realities of domestic pests. Through conversation and reflection, participants are invited to share personal stories of unwanted encounters with creatures that invade our homes. Alternatively, written confessions can anonymously be placed in a dedicated confession box.
Description
Rats. Mice. Bed bugs. Flies. Fleas. Share your stories of living with the uninvited. The Pest Confessional Booth offers a private space to anonymously reflect on the creatures that invade our homes. Whether your experience was unsettling, funny, or surprisingly joyful, all confessions are welcome.
The Pest Confessional
Discovering The Digital Humanities: Hands On Learning And Exploration
Age: All
Type: Exhibition
Host: Kirsten Schuster, Lecturer in Digital Humanities, University of Southampton
Date and Time (UK Time):08/11/2025 10:30 - 16:00
Sir James Matthews Building 157-187 Above Bar Street Southampton SO14 7NN
Free
Summary
Step into a space where technology meets creativity. This exhibition brings together the transformative power of 3D printing, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) to explore how digital tools are reshaping research, storytelling, and cultural engagement.
Description
The exhibition highlights how technology and the humanities come together to inspire creative thinking, deepen understanding, and connect with communities in meaningful ways.
