On Saturday, April 16, the Quest Science Center hosted its 6th annual Tri-Valley Innovation Fair at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. The event hosted clubs and organizations specializing in science, engineering, and technology.
“The main purpose of this innovation fair is to bring visibility to the amazing number of science and technology and innovation companies and organizations that we have right here in the Tri-Valley region,” said Quest Science Center CEO Monya Lane.
The Quest Science Center, a start-up organization, works to bring together communities through hands-on experiences in science, engineering, and technology. The fair let visitors have a “peek behind the curtain” to see the various opportunities offered in the Tri-Valley.
“[We accomplish this through] activities like the Innovation Fair, like Science in Stockman’s Park, other kinds of pop-up activities and eventually a permanent science center for the Tri-Valley region,” said Lane.
Nurturing the environment
This year, the fair mainly focused on sustainability. Most organizations and clubs centered their activities around environmentalism and the climate.
“Our booth is about introducing people to our local parks. We can kind of give them a little taste and example of what the parks are about, what they look like, so it maybe entices them to take their families or themselves out to really visit them in person,” said Supervising Naturalist for the East Bay Regional Parks District Natalie Hurtado.
The East Bay Regional Parks District had representatives present virtual simulations of their visitors’ center and surrounding trails. This allowed visitors to visualize what events were happening at local parks.
“Out in the Sunol wilderness, we’re far away from urban development. Sunol, California, is our closest smallest town to us. What we have here is our virtual reality component within our mobile visitor center. So sometimes, when the kids can’t come to us because it’s too far, we can get to go to the kids and bring them to the trails,” said Hurtado.
Featured robotics programs
The technology aspect of the fair included robotics, tutoring, and design clubs and organizations. Amador’s UAVs club appeared with in-progress parts to show the evolution of their drones.
“We want to inspire the community. General community outreach is kind of the goal of being here. We came mostly to just show what we’re about, what we’re doing, and make people aware that we exist,” said UAVs Mechanical Lead Rachel Schmidt (‘26).
Space-related programs such as the Tri-Valley Stargazers Astronomy Club and NASA’s AMES Research Center also attended the fair. They showcased unique aspects of outer space including the engineering of satellites.
“I was most interested in probably the NASA booth. It’s cool to see how biology and space can be so connected like that,” said a Dublin High School student Saketh Parimi.
Many groups actively promoted themselves at the Innovation Fair. They filled their booths with business cards, flyers, posters, and interest forms.
Law enforcement at the innovation fair
“This is a kind of recruiting outreach coming in a sense. We’re here to answer questions that people have with law enforcement in general. What we have to offer, and just explain options that a lot of people don’t know are available,” said Alameda County Deputy Sheriff Stanley Cheung.
Alameda County’s Sheriff Office and Livermore’s Police Department made appearances. They educated visitors on job opportunities, programs, and general knowledge.
“There’s positions where you can look at IT, you can look at the human resource center. So it’s not just about being sworn. You can work in an office set in the soul of the Sheriff’s Office,” added Alameda County Deputy Sheriff Stephanie Schikpe.
The Innovation Fair united a community of enthusiasts in science, engineering, and technology. At the end of the day, they learned more about the diverse opportunities our community offers.
“This is really important for us to be part of the educational ecosystem in the Tri-Valley. We don’t have a science center here in the Tri-Valley area, so the Innovation Fair is really an example of the experience of a hands-on, interactive, fun, exciting place that students and families can come to have an experience that tells them that science is everywhere and for everyone, said Lane.
