The Athens Science Festival is Greece's largest annual celebration of science, technology, and innovation, attracting tens of thousands of visitors over several days of exhibitions, workshops, performances, and interactive experiences in the heart of the Greek capital. Organised by Science Communication β SciCo, the festival transforms Technopolis, Athens' historic industrial gas works turned cultural venue, into a vibrant showcase of scientific discovery and technological innovation.
Smart city technologies feature prominently in the festival's programme, with dedicated exhibition areas and interactive demonstrations showcasing urban innovations including environmental sensors, smart mobility solutions, energy-efficient building technologies, and digital citizen engagement tools. The festival's approach is distinctively participatory, with hands-on workshops and maker spaces where visitors of all ages can experiment with robotics, coding, 3D printing, and IoT prototyping.
Special sessions for schools and families make complex urban technology concepts accessible to young people, cultivating the next generation of smart city innovators. The Athens Science Festival also hosts panel discussions and talks by leading Greek and international scientists, entrepreneurs, and policymakers on topics including climate change, artificial intelligence, sustainable urbanism, and the ethics of technology in cities.
A startup showcase provides a platform for emerging Greek technology companies to demonstrate their innovations to a broad public audience. By making science and technology visible, accessible, and exciting, the Athens Science Festival plays an important role in building public understanding of and support for the digital and sustainable transformation of Greek cities, contributing to the broader civic culture that underpins successful smart city development.