Northern Ireland’s hugely successful solar system trail Our Place in Space will land in Hanoi, Vietnam later this autumn.
The trail designed by artist Oliver Jeffers, astrophysicist Professor Stephen Smartt and a creative team led by Derry’s Nerve Centre, has so far attracted over one million visitors across the UK and takes visitors on a journey through a scale model of the solar system.
Having already visited Derry, Belfast, Liverpool, Cambridge and North Down, this hugely acclaimed interactive three-dimensional (3D) sculpture trail will be installed in parks and lakes across central Hanoi for two weeks in November, accompanied by an exciting STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths)-based learning and events programme.
“Our Place in Space encourages people to reflect on humanity’s place within the universe and what it means to exist on Earth, the only place known to harbour life. With distance comes perspective. The Vietnam trail will explore what happens to our perspective when we look back at Earth from Space, and how we can come together to tackle issues like the climate emergency,” says Belfast-bred artist and children's author Oliver Jeffers.
The project, which will see the Nerve Centre partner with Vietnamese social enterprise Think Playgrounds, is part of the British Council’s UK/ Viet Nam Season which will run from June through to December 2023.
Marking 50 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and Vietnam, the UK/Viet Nam Season, themed on Climate and the Environment and Shared Heritage, will bring together thought leaders, academics, educators, entrepreneurs, and artists from various organisations to share ideas and experiences, and discuss existing and future collaborations in the areas of arts and culture, education and English.
Ulster University will also be part of the season, running a fully funded scholarship programme for Vietnamese English language teachers to study an online Masters course in English language teaching.
