2025 Cambridge Festival highlights revealed

What’s on offer at this year’s Cambridge Festival…

Want to know what life will be like in 2125? Or how about a chat with the latest humanoid robot? Would you tear up money as a form of artistic protest? And could whales offer clues to help us live longer?

These questions and more are explored during the Cambridge Festival when it returns on the 19th of March for a 17-day showcase featuring nearly 400 mostly free events themed around environment, health, society and discovery.

Cambridge Festival Manager, David Cain:

“We’re excited to return with a programme that lets everyone engage with Cambridge’s world-class research. This year’s festival is larger than ever, reflecting our rapidly changing world and the need for urgent solutions. The festival showcases vital work being done here in Cambridge and globally, whether learning from the past or using creative methods for future solutions. I encourage everyone of all ages to explore the programme on 17 February, to gain new perspectives and try something different.”

One of the largest of its kind in the UK, the Festival offers an extensive series of talks, debates, demonstrations, exhibitions, tours, performances, workshops and interactive events organised by the University of Cambridge. A specially curated and exciting programme for children and families is also on offer.

Several events focus on our future. The live demo Sensors for a smarter home (22 March) displays how smart sensors will enhance our home safety, sustainability, and comfort using technologies such as: temperature and humidity sensors for comfort; light and occupancy sensors for energy efficiency; air quality sensors for healthier ventilation; smoke, noise, and water leak sensors for immediate alerts.

Another event, Ideas that could change the world (21 March), asks questions such as will we be able to print our own organs in the digital age? What about using our fingerprints to access health advice? Or what about growing plants that can adapt to extreme climate changes? Cutting-edge Gates Cambridge researchers focus on engaging with the world’s toughest challenges in this panel event.

Robots are set to become an essential part of our future, assisting us in our homes, workplaces and even hospitals. These robots are not only becoming more useful but also more relatable, as scientists design them with human-like features and responses. Visitors can Meet Furhat, the conversational robot (22 March), a very advanced humanoid conversational robot with life-like expressions powered by the latest advancements in robotics and artificial intelligence.

Those that want to delve deeper into robotics can get hands-on during an interactive workshop, Navigating the physical world: The essential role of robots (29 March), Dr Chapa Sirithunge, Narges Khadem Hosseini, Dr Yue Xie and Dr Arsen Abdulali introduce the exciting world of bio-inspired robots. The team also share their experiences as researchers, discussing the essential role of robots in the future and their potential.

Several events look at what’s next in health and healthcare. In Tomorrow’s health today: AI and data science explained (27 March), experts from the UK Health Security Agency and the University of Cambridge share insights on how AI and data science are shaping the future of healthcare, through real-world applications in early disease screening, monitoring disease outbreaks and prevention. This talk reveals how these advancements could affect our health and the healthcare we receive.

A further talk, Futuristic medicine (29 March), introduces techniques and methods that are already, or about to be, used in medicine. Many of them were science fiction not that long ago. What are we to expect during the next decade? What about the next 50 years? This talk will be given by Estherina Trachtenberg, a neuroscientist, social activist and nurse.

Why do some animals, such as whales, live exceptionally long lives free from many age-related diseases? The engaging talk, The impossibility of whales: How studying the genomes of extraordinary species could help us stay healthier for longer (3 April) explores how certain animals seem to have evolved superior mechanisms for DNA protection and repair. Discover how collaborations with zoos and conservation groups are enabling us to explore the DNA of species with extraordinary lifespans, uncovering evolutionary strategies that might one day unlock the secrets of healthy ageing in humans.

One event tipped to be a favourite with visitors is the art exhibition Cambridge science in the year 2125 (22 March), which offers a one-of-a-kind experience to view modern science from tomorrow’s perspective. It reimagines the future of science, technology and human progress a century from now through vibrant installations, interactive displays and visionary artwork. Through cutting-edge exhibits and conversations with real-life research innovators from the BioNano Engineering group, this event offers a fascinating glimpse into the scientific breakthroughs that continue to impact society and the planet in this imagined future.

Two topical events address the protection of health workers and journalists in armed conflict. In Keeping the Storytellers Safe in War (28 March), Paul Conroy, a photographer and filmmaker with extensive experience as a journalist in combat zones, and Giles Duley, a photographer, writer, presenter, and CEO of the Legacy of War Foundation, share their motivations for covering armed conflict and recount their personal experiences of becoming part of the story due to injuries sustained. The discussion also examines methods for ensuring the safety of journalists while allowing for the collection of essential content. Mark Smith, the chair of the International Broadcasting Convention, emphasises the convergence of communications, technology, and media.

The WHO/World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) 2024 report: Line of Fire highlights increasing attacks on healthcare in armed conflict. An interdisciplinary panel discuss the report’s recommendations in Protecting healthcare in armed conflict (27 March). Panellists include Ben De Pear, Executive Producer of Oscar-nominated For Sama; Jim Campbell, WHO Health Workforce Director; Sultana Adfal, CEO of WISH; Saleyha Ahsan, CRASSH Healthcare in Conflict lead; and Professor Francoise Hampson, international humanitarian law expert.

Several new books are also discussed at the festival. During The Cambridge prehistory of partitions: A walking tour (21 & 22 March) Cambridge academic Erin MB O’Halloran, the author of a new book, East of Empire: Egypt, India, and the World between the Wars (March 2025), traces the significant role Cambridge played in the drama of colonial struggles for self-determination – struggles which led, in 1947/8, to the epochal partitions of India–Pakistan and Israel–Palestine.

Research Fellow Dr Victoria Baena also talks about her new book project during Love and friendship in the archive: Amélie Bosquet and Gustave Flaubert (22 March) and recounts the friendship (and, eventually, dramatic rupture) in letters between Gustave Flaubert and Amélie Bosquet: a novelist, socialist and feminist activist, mostly known today, if at all, for having inspired his famous comment “Madame Bovary, c’est moi.”

Drawing on original archival research, the presentation is structured around the fascinating, flirtatious – but by all accounts, platonic – friendship between Bosquet and Flaubert as it unfolds in their letters. Her talk also fleshes out the life and background of this unconventional woman, whose life story reveals a constant negotiation between literature, activism, the need to make a living, and various emotional desires and intimacies.

In Living with Jane Austen (26 March), Janet Todd introduces her new book of the same name, which aims to show why Austen matters to us now and how our understanding of her work changes at different cultural moments.

The festival features many events that encourage creative thinking. One highlight is Tilda Swinton’s directorial debut, The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze: A Cambridge Festival launch event (19 March). This film poses thought-provoking questions about intelligence, artificiality, and learning through movement, robots, games, crafts, stories, and cinema. It explores pedagogy, work, and play across four global sites, encouraging viewers to reflect on the mechanics of learning.

Can art create value from nothing? In the provocative workshop, Tearing up money: Turning currency into collective art (22 March – 29 March, Fridays 3-5pm), participants tear up worthless Venezuelan banknotes to create art, addressing political and social issues. Led by Katherine Hasegawa, a Venezuelan ARTivist, the workshop also highlights stories of Venezuela’s economic struggles.

And finally, visitors can experience a volcano (almost!) during an art exhibition for all ages, Magma Rising: A Journey to the Centre of Icelandic Volcanoes (Wed-Sun, 26 Feb – 22 April). Inspired by Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth, this exhibit lets visitors explore an Icelandic volcano. On display are various artworks and heritage objects, including first-edition books, cipher typography, climbing tools, film props, video games, paintings, a wall mural, an inside-out volcano, music videos, volcanic ash art, ruined seismometers, and more.

The full programme launches on 17 February with bookings also opening on the same day. Events are held in venues across the city. www.festival.cam.ac.uk