By Mathias Roos, CEO at Kreativum Science Center

In 2019, twenty years has passed since His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden inaugurated Kreativum Science Center in southeastern Sweden. During the two decades of existence, Kreativum has witnessed great advancements in the fields of natural sciences, technology and sustainable development. Since 2018 Kreativum is fully owned by the municipality of Karlshamn and now the plans for stepping into the next twenty years of inspiring and educating citizens are entering a very intense phase.

Like many other science centers globally, Kreativum has set its sights on increasing the relevance of the activities for broader groups of audiences. One of the key needs for the center is to go as deep as possible into an analysis of why certain people feel natural to visit the science center and why others do not.

Regardless of what will be the result of this work, Kreativum will work to strengthen the core of the idea behind science centers, connecting people with science while stimulating creativity and entrepreneurial learning. These have been some of the self-evident values from the beginning in 1999.

This can bee seen also when looking into the original business plan for the science center, dated just before the new millennium. The main differences when comparing now and then are logically related to technology - what was up and coming and cutting edge in 1999 is not relevant now. But there is so much to learn from the original plans, things that can lead Kreativum towards a succesful future. 

One of the key aspects that can be found in the original plans and that can serve as a keystone concept for developing new content is the idea to increase the understanding how technology and natural science can assist us in our everyday life. When we consider that this principle is more relevant than ever, in times when our everyday life rapidly needs to be transformed into more sustainable practices, we are able to use it as guiding concept when planning content.

New exhibitions in cooperation with world leading researchers

The regional technical university in Blekinge is world leading in research on strategic leadership for sustainability. There are plans for an exhibit visualizing practical transformation to a sustainable society. The exhibit will be connected to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and co-developed not only with research but also with industry partners. Another top field of research in the region is related to sound and plans are progressing for an exhibit on so called spatial sound, related to how we humans relate to and react to sound in different ways depending e.g. on the location of the sound source.

Anniversary activities

One of the key success factors for Kreativum has been the mega dome cinema called Kreanova. It has been the heart of the operations but not used since the beginning of 2018 due to technical reasons. The analog technology is outdated but during the annivesary year a refurbishment will take place. But before Kreanova is closed for the renovation and update, some of the most popular films shown during the first twenty years will be shown again and many people who have visited the science center when growing up can return and experience the nostalgia.