On the last Friday of September, the European Researchers’ Night 2025 took place all over Latvia, attracting around 29,650 participants with hundreds of exciting activities. Experiments, creative workshops and guided walks with researchers highlighted science as a valuable resource for society. This annual initiative offered families, school groups, students and all interested visitors the chance to discover how research brings practical benefits to everyday life, while also inspiring reflections on present and future opportunities.
On 26 September, events were held in more than 40 venues across all Latvian regions, representing all scientific fields – social sciences, humanities and natural sciences.
The diversity of programmes ensured that every curious visitor could find an engaging and meaningful way to explore science. Especially significant was the active participation of young people, who today are school pupils and students but tomorrow will be researchers, inventors and innovators – a vital investment in the long-term development of society.
This year, several universities attracted particularly large audiences:
- University of Latvia (UL) Academic Centre (~ 4 500);
- Riga Technical University (~3 250);
- Daugavpils University (~2 800);
- Riga Stradiņš University (2 648);
- Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies (1 812).
More than 1,000 visitors attended events at the Institute of Solid State Physics, UL; Zemgale Regional Competence Development Centre (Jelgava); Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis; and the “Elektrum” Energy Efficiency Centre (Jūrmala).
This year’s motto “Discover the Researcher Gene Within You!” proved to be particularly inspiring – visitors of all ages embraced curiosity, conducted experiments, attended lectures and joined educational tours, discovering how science unites the natural sciences, humanities and social sciences. Demonstrations, research walks, escape rooms and creative workshops received wide acclaim, giving visitors the chance to experience science in an informal and engaging way by taking part in the process of discovery themselves.
According to the monitoring study “Research Consumption and Participation in Latvia” (Latvian Academy of Culture & SKDS, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024), public participation in the European Researchers’ Night is steadily increasing. While in 2018 only 2.8% of respondents had taken part in the event, by 2024 this figure had grown to 4.6%. This positive trend demonstrates a growing public interest in science and researchers’ work, with the annual science communication event strengthening ties between researchers and wider society.
The initiative will continue next year – European Researchers’ Night 2026 will take place on Friday, 25 September, once again giving the public the opportunity to discover the practical benefits and value of science in everyday life.
About researchLatvia
The science communication brand and portal researchLatvia is developed by the Ministry of Education and Science of Latvia to promote the visibility of Latvia's research, highlight scientific achievements and strengthen the connection between scientists and society. The communication and public awareness campaign of the “Researchers’ Night 2025” was carried out within the project No. 1.1.1.1/1/24/I/001 “More Effective and Smarter Implementation and Management of Latvia’s Science Policy” implemented by the Ministry of Education and Science.
