Spring at Lviv Polytechnic National University has a tradition that belongs to everyone, not only to researchers behind closed laboratory doors, but to schoolchildren, students, teachers, and anyone curious about what science actually looks like in practice. Each year, the university opens its space for the Science Fair (Naukovi Festyny), one of the largest and most beloved events on the university calendar, bringing science to life through hands-on demonstrations, interactive zones, open lectures, and exhibitions of real research developments.
This year, the Science Fair took place on 23 April, running from 11:00 to 14:00, and the HELIOS project was there.
What is the Science Fair?
The Science Fair is not a conference or a formal presentation. It is something closer to a celebration, an annual occasion when the full breadth of Lviv Polytechnic’s research activity becomes visible and accessible to the public. Visitors move between interactive locations set up by different departments and institutes, watch live scientific demonstrations, attend masterclasses, and engage directly with researchers. The event draws future students considering university admission, schoolchildren encountering advanced science for the first time, and professionals and educators eager to see what is being developed at Ukraine’s oldest technical university.
The fair creates a unique atmosphere: the kind where someone can walk in knowing nothing about organic chemistry and walk out genuinely curious about light-emitting molecules.
HELIOS at the Fair
The HELIOS project (Research and Innovation Strategy for Lviv Polytechnic National University Dedicated to White-Emitting Organic Lighting Systems), funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (WIDERA), Grant Agreement No. 101155017, was presented as part of the Science Fair, giving visitors a chance to discover the world of organic light-emitting systems in a format designed for a broad, non-specialist audience.
The presentation introduced what the project is working to achieve: the development of ultra-efficient, single-molecular white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) and white LEDs (WLEDs) that could transform the way we think about lighting — making it thinner, lighter, more flexible, and significantly more energy-efficient. The contribution of HELIOS to the goals of the European Green Deal 2050, and the role of Lviv Polytechnic as the coordinating institution of an international consortium spanning Ukraine, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Latvia, and Luxembourg, were also highlighted.
For many visitors, this was likely the first time they encountered organic lighting technologies in person and the Science Fair format made that encounter genuinely engaging.
Why this matters
One of the key commitments of the HELIOS project, beyond its scientific goals, is the development of research capacity and the promotion of science communication. Reaching a public audience, particularly young people who may become the next generation of researchers, is not a side activity. It is central to the mission.
Events like the Science Fair are where the gap between the laboratory and the world outside begins to close. They are where future scientists first discover that the questions being asked in universities are not distant abstractions, but real answers to real challenges: how we illuminate our cities, how we reduce energy consumption, and how Ukraine’s research excellence takes its rightful place in the European innovation landscape.
We look forward to continuing this conversation at future events and to welcoming more visitors into the world of the light of the future.
The HELIOS project is funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (WIDERA), Grant Agreement No. 101155017.
Spring at Lviv Polytechnic National University has a tradition that belongs to everyone, not only to researchers behind closed laboratory doors, but to schoolchildren, students, teachers, and anyone curious about what science actually looks like in practice. Each year, the university opens its space for the Science Fair (Naukovi Festyny), one of the largest and most beloved events on the university calendar, bringing science to life through hands-on demonstrations, interactive zones, open lectures, and exhibitions of real research developments.
This year, the Science Fair took place on 23 April, running from 11:00 to 14:00, and the HELIOS project was there.
What is the Science Fair?
The Science Fair is not a conference or a formal presentation. It is something closer to a celebration, an annual occasion when the full breadth of Lviv Polytechnic’s research activity becomes visible and accessible to the public. Visitors move between interactive locations set up by different departments and institutes, watch live scientific demonstrations, attend masterclasses, and engage directly with researchers. The event draws future students considering university admission, schoolchildren encountering advanced science for the first time, and professionals and educators eager to see what is being developed at Ukraine’s oldest technical university.
The fair creates a unique atmosphere: the kind where someone can walk in knowing nothing about organic chemistry and walk out genuinely curious about light-emitting molecules.
HELIOS at the Fair
The HELIOS project (Research and Innovation Strategy for Lviv Polytechnic National University Dedicated to White-Emitting Organic Lighting Systems), funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (WIDERA), Grant Agreement No. 101155017, was presented as part of the Science Fair, giving visitors a chance to discover the world of organic light-emitting systems in a format designed for a broad, non-specialist audience.
The presentation introduced what the project is working to achieve: the development of ultra-efficient, single-molecular white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) and white LEDs (WLEDs) that could transform the way we think about lighting — making it thinner, lighter, more flexible, and significantly more energy-efficient. The contribution of HELIOS to the goals of the European Green Deal 2050, and the role of Lviv Polytechnic as the coordinating institution of an international consortium spanning Ukraine, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Latvia, and Luxembourg, were also highlighted.
For many visitors, this was likely the first time they encountered organic lighting technologies in person and the Science Fair format made that encounter genuinely engaging.
Why this matters
One of the key commitments of the HELIOS project, beyond its scientific goals, is the development of research capacity and the promotion of science communication. Reaching a public audience, particularly young people who may become the next generation of researchers, is not a side activity. It is central to the mission.
Events like the Science Fair are where the gap between the laboratory and the world outside begins to close. They are where future scientists first discover that the questions being asked in universities are not distant abstractions, but real answers to real challenges: how we illuminate our cities, how we reduce energy consumption, and how Ukraine’s research excellence takes its rightful place in the European innovation landscape.
We look forward to continuing this conversation at future events and to welcoming more visitors into the world of the light of the future.
The HELIOS project is funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme (WIDERA), Grant Agreement No. 101155017.
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