This year marked the 10th edition of UniKidsCamp. In collaboration with various groups, faculties, and departments at the University of Basel, the children spent a week experiencing academic science firsthand and learning about different areas of research.

Our research group was also represented with its own station. Together with the children, we delved into the diverse world of rivers. Through a short presentation, various images, and group discussions, we first covered important fundamentals about river systems and their dynamics. Among other things, we discussed how rivers shape valleys and landscapes, how water volume influences erosion processes, and what effects flooding, bridges, or dams can have on a river system. We also explored the role of humans as shapers and protectors of river landscapes.

Another key focal area was on the current issue of drought and water scarcity. The children explored what happens when rivers have increasingly less water, what consequences changes in water availability have for river ecosystems and landscapes, and how the impact on the animals living there can be minimized as much as possible. Using concrete examples, protective measures were also discussed, such as bans on swimming during low water levelsand high water temperatures, or cordoning off certain areas of the riverbank to provide fish and other aquatic life with sufficient undisturbed refuge areas.

Afterward, the knowledge they had gained was put into practice at the flume, an experimental flow model. Here, the children were able to observe with their own eyes and explore with their own hands how water moves sediment, how erosion occurs, and how river courses and landforms change under different conditions.

In this way, theoretical knowledge became something immediately tangible: through their own observations, experiments, and discussions, the children were able to discover and understand the complex processes in and around rivers step by step.