"Ciencia en Acción" takes Science on Stage to Castellón

Onda successfully hosts "Ciencia en Acción", the competition that promotes scientific outreach in Spain

Report: Cora Cosín Hernández

On November 7th, 8th, and 9th, 2025, the 26th edition of Ciencia en Acción was held in Onda, Castellón. This competition offers primary, secondary, and university teachers and professors the opportunity to showcase their science outreach and promotion projects, competing for the first prize and the chance to represent Spain at the 2026 edition of the European Science on Stage festival.

The Ciencia en Acción competition has been held uninterruptedly since the year 2000, even taking place online during the pandemic year. This year, 320 projects were submitted, of which 61 were selected to participate in the final. They were joined by last year’s winners, who were specially invited. In total, 75 projects were expected to participate, though due to various circumstances the final number was 64. These were the projects selected for this edition.

La Campaneta Factoría Cultural was the venue where, on Saturday, November 8th, the projects and experiments were displayed. The exhibition remained open for eight hours, welcoming numerous visitors who were impressed by the quality of the work presented. The Mayor of Onda, Mrs. Carmina Ballester, accompanied by Vicent Bou, Deputy Mayor for Innovation, visited the exhibition, praising the work carried out by the students under the guidance of their teachers, as well as the impeccable way in which they explained their projects to the visitors.

The jury, composed of 12 scientists representing various Spanish scientific societies and institutes, visited and evaluated the projects throughout the morning. After their deliberations, they drafted the official results, which were delivered to the organizing committee.

On Sunday, November 9, at the Mónaco Theatre-Auditorium in Onda, and in front of nearly 300 attendees, the award ceremony took place, announcing the winners and presenting diplomas and trophies. A total of 13 first prizes were awarded—some of them ex aequo—along with 18 honorable mentions.

Finally, as the closing highlight of the event, the host city for the next edition of Ciencia en Acción in 2026 was announced. San Sebastián, (Donostia), País Vasco, will hold the event next year.

The 26th edition held in Onda was a complete success, with the public praising both the high quality of the projects and the excellent organization of the event, as highlighted by all participants. The selection process for the Spanish delegation to the Science on Stage festival in Lithuania in May 2026 is ongoing and will be completed soon.