March For Science 2018: LA

Astrophysicist and curator of the Gryffith Observatory, Dr. Laura Danly, discusses the importance of science and its role in shaping the world for the LA March for Science held at Pershing Square in Downtown Los Angeles, California, on Saturday, April 14th, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ the Corsair)

A crowd of teachers, scientists, and environmental advocates listen to the talks of several renouned researchers and activtists during the LA March for Science in Pershing Square in Los Angeles, California, on Saturday, April 14th, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ the Corsair)

Califonia State Senator, Kevin de Leon, speaks of policy change at the LA March for Science in Pershing Square, Los Angeles, California, on Saturday, April 14, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ the Corsair)

Malik Ducard, global head of family and learning for Youtube, speaks to the crowd at the LA March for Science in Pershing Square, Los Angeles, California, on Saturday, April 14, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ the Corsair)

Jess Pheonix, volcanologist, geologist, and executive director/co-founder of nonprofit environmental research organization Blueprint Earth, discusses how “anyone can be a scientist,” at the LA March for Science in Pershing Square, Los Angeles, California, on Saturday, April 14th, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ the Corsair)

The warm Saturday morning attracted a wide demographic, though people under 30 years old made up the majority of the crowd.The main events of the day were speakers like Jess Phoenix, who is a volcano scientist that is running for Congress in California this year. She said, “I came, in my capacity, as a science communicator to try to get the word out that science is for everybody and that that is how we are going to solve big picture problems, like climate change.”

Though less than half of the tens of thousands that gathered for last year's march were in attendance, this years event focused on engaging attendees, particularly children and adolescents, with hands-on activities, rather than acting simply as a protest. Dozens of booths were set up in the square, showcasing everything from DIY robotics to information on congressional districts and how to advocate for science to representatives in congress.

The first March For Science event in 2017 initially came into existence as a direct result of Donald Trump being elected into office. It was initially organized in response to Candidate Trump's outspoken stance against combating climate change, as well as the current administration's perceived antipathy towards scientific institutions. In 2013, Trump tweeted, “We should be focused on magnificently clean and healthy air and not distracted by the expensive hoax that is global warming!”

While last year's March for Science was inherently political, this year the organizers tried to move the focus away from immediate partisan politics, one of the main event planners, Philip Wheeler said "We're focused mostly on issues where politicians are ignoring the data, ignoring the facts."

Though politics did play an important part in the proceedings, much of the focus of the event was on children, particularly in regards to promoting scientific literacy and excitement for scientific research in children and adolescents. The organization Rolling Robots had a large display set up featuring a large, friendly faced robot that the children could control with a remote control, as well as several smaller robots that kids could "program" to walk specific paths or play short tunes.

Alliance for Science, the organization that put together the March, brought this focus to every aspect of their event planning, many of the featured speakers had demonstrations and songs geared towards children, and kids could complete a scientific "scavenger hunt" as they visited various informational booths. Their hunt ended with the chance to collect a dinosaur toy from event staff after demonstrating their scientific knowledge.

Alliance for Science sees outreach for children as being one of the most effective ways to spread scientific awareness, with volunteer Melissa Franks stating, "What we're trying to do is get parents to educate their kids, get kids to educate their parents, its all about spreading awareness and information." Despite lower attendance than last year, hundreds of children still excitedly waved signs and pulled their parents along the rows of stalls.

set up featuring a large, friendly faced robot that the children could control with a remote control, as well as several smaller robots that kids could "program" to walk specific paths or play short tunes.

Alliance for Science, the organization that put together the March, brought this focus to every aspect of their event planning, many of the featured speakers had demonstrations and songs geared towards children, and kids could complete a scientific "scavenger hunt" as they visited various informational booths. Their hunt ended with the chance to collect a dinosaur toy from event staff after demonstrating their scientific knowledge.

Alliance for Science sees outreach for children as being one of the most effective ways to spread scientific awareness, with volunteer Melissa Franks stating, "What we're trying to do is get parents to educate their kids, get kids to educate their parents, its all about spreading awareness and information." Despite lower attendance than last year, hundreds of children still excitedly waved signs and pulled their parents along the rows of stalls.