Dear ESERA Community, It is our great pleasure to welcome you to Copenhagen and to the 16th Conference of The European Science Education Research Association, taking place August 25-29, 2025.
Under the theme Transitions in Science Education: Sustainability and Digital Advances, this conference brings together researchers, educators, and practitioners from around the world to explore how science education can respond to and shape the transformative challenges of our time. In an era marked by digital innovation and environmental urgency, we come together to examine how our field can adapt to better serve learners and society.
As we explore transitions in science education, we are also embracing transitions in how we experience conferences themselves. Our goal is to make ESERA 2025 more interactive and meaningful – creating encounters that participants carry with them long before and after our week together in Copenhagen. The ESERA Prelude (August 21-24) exemplifies this vision, opening Danish science education to international participants and offering an insider’s view of our educational landscape. We have also introduced exploratory seminars as a new presentation format and adapted existing ones to foster more meaningful encounters between researchers and ideas.
In line with digital transitions, we have employed large language models to create thematically grouped sessions with descriptive titles, helping you navigate our virtual programme more effectively. Embracing sustainability transitions, we offer special conference discounts on public transport, provide vegetarian catering, and invite you to make sustainable choices throughout your Copenhagen experience, among other initiatives.
This is the largest ESERA conference to date, and as we celebrate ESERA’s 30-year anniversary, we can be proud of our growing community. With over 1,500 contributions spanning 20 research strands, this book of abstracts represents the work and dedication of researchers from around the globe. We extend a big thank you to the strand chairs and reviewers whose expertise and commitment have ensured the scientific quality of our programme.
Yet as we celebrate our achievements, we must acknowledge that much is at stake in the current state of our world. As researchers and educators, we all have a responsibility to step up to the challenges of our time, shape science education in ways that matter, and join forces in building the foundations for a more scientifically literate society.
Copenhagen, with its commitment to sustainability and innovation, provides the perfect backdrop for these conversations. We invite you to engage deeply, forge new connections, and contribute to the transformative potential of science education.
