The Biomedical Engineering Student Association (BESA) once again brought biomedical engineering to the community through its annual participation in Science Rendezvous, Canada’s largest science outreach festival.
Led by Community Outreach Director Megh Rathod, this year’s event welcomed more than 200 visitors to the Biomedical Engineering booth. Families, students, and community members spent the day engaging with hands-on demonstrations designed to showcase how biomedical engineering is improving health and advancing scientific discovery.
After months of planning and preparation, the outreach team developed three interactive demonstrations highlighting different areas of biomedical engineering. Visitors were able to see and touch hydrogels used in biomedical applications, explore fluorescence and microscopy techniques used to study biological systems, and learn how wearable optical sensors can monitor heart health in real time. These demonstrations sparked conversations about the many ways engineering and medicine intersect to improve patient care and quality of life.
One particularly memorable interaction occurred during the wearable sensing demonstration. After learning that heart rate changes based on the body’s demands, a young visitor decided to run around campus before returning to measure his heart rate again. Watching his amazement as the numbers changed in real time—driven by a small, bright light shining into his finger to measure heart rate and blood oxygen levels—captured exactly what makes science outreach so rewarding. A simple demonstration quickly became a meaningful moment of discovery.
The event was made possible through the efforts of a dedicated team of volunteers. Graduate students Sasha Korolov, Willow Peterson, Kate MacQuarrie, and Ben Keiser, along with fellow Community Outreach Director Aden Wong, helped design and deliver engaging activities throughout the day. Professor Lindsey Fiddes contributed materials and resources from the teaching lab that further enhanced the visitor experience. Together, the planning team and enthusiastic volunteers helped make biomedical engineering approachable, interactive, and exciting for attendees of all ages.
This year marked the fourth year that Megh Rathod has led Biomedical Engineering’s participation in Science Rendezvous. Events like these highlight the importance of stepping beyond the laboratory to engage directly with the public. Research has its greatest impact when people can connect with it, ask questions, and see how it relates to their own lives.
As planning begins for future outreach initiatives, BESA welcomes students interested in science communication, community engagement, and educational program development. There is tremendous potential to expand these activities, develop new demonstrations, and inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, and healthcare innovators. Students interested in contributing are encouraged to reach out to discuss ideas, learn more about the planning process, or get involved with upcoming initiatives. Building meaningful outreach experiences takes creativity, enthusiasm, and collaboration, and new perspectives are always welcome.
Science Rendezvous, held annually at universities and research institutions across Canada, remains one of the country’s premier celebrations of science and discovery. The biomedical engineering community looks forward to building on this year’s success and making future events even bigger and more impactful.
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