On September 26, 2025, the “European Researchers’ Night 2025” events were held at Daugavpils University, which attracted around 3,000 participants.

The cooperation between the IHSS and the association “Cita Daugavpils [Another Daugavpils]”, visitors to the “European Scientists’ Night 2025” were offered the opportunity to participate in the interactive game “Neighborhoods and Us”. By inviting them to mark their neighborhood on the map and playing the created games, their leaders – Inga Belousa, Vitālijs Meinerts, Vitālijs Kapustins un Vladislavs Matvejevs – encouraged participants to get involved in their neighborhood’s population group in order to strengthen neighborhood communities. Interactive neighborhood games are also a research tool. Mapping neighborhood resources helps to understand the opinions of Daugavpils residents about neighborhoods, rationalizing the everyday living space of a city dweller allows us to evaluate neighborhood resources, namely, how useful and beneficial the use of resources is for the residents of the neighborhood. Mapping neighborhood resources is based on the research method of social anthropology. The game leaders will use the obtained data to develop recommendations for the Daugavpils municipality. The activity took place within the framework of the DU research project “Inter-disciplinarity and Diversity in the Contemporary Research in Humanities I” (No. 14-95/2025/15). Project manager – acting director of HSZI, Prof. and senior researcher Anita Stašulāne.

Senior researcher Vera Komarova and PhD student Elena Fedorova conducted the quiz “Countries – Leaders in Economics.” Quiz participants were asked seven questions and offered seven countries from which it was possible to create a flower with seven pairs of petals.

As part of the “European Scientists’ Night 2025”, an activity “Daugavpils Tram – a Witness of the History” was held (authors – IHSS researchers Marīte Opincāne, Karīne Laganovska, and Viktors Punculis). The participants got acquainted with the history of the Daugavpils tram and discovered interesting facts about the development of the city’s public transport, as well as learned how the tram has influenced the daily life of Daugavpils in different eras. Both adults and children participated in the event – everyone interested in the history of the city and its cultural heritage.

The event visitors were offered the intellectual game “Discovering the Gene of a Cultural Researcher: Translating and Interpreting the World (Cinema, Literature, Sports)”. Participants could feel themselves in the role of cultural researchers and test how they themselves are able to decipher cultural codes – from film dialogues and translation nuances to interpretations of sports events in the Soviet press. In three educational activities, participants could try out the work of a subtitle translator, discover the secrets of Soviet-era translations and find out how sports once served as an instrument of ‘soft power’. The game format allowed for both learning and entertainment at the same time, revealing that cultural research can be an exciting adventure that anyone can participate in. The organizers of the activity: researchers Evita Badina and Žans Badins and PhD student Ģirts Vikmanis; the activity was organized within the framework of DU research project “Ideology, Censorship and Text in Narrative Research: The Experience of Soviet Latvia – II” (No. 14-95/2025/5).

In the context of the message of the “European Researchers’ Night 2025” “Uncover the researcher gene within you!”, the working group of the Horizon Europe programme project “Promoting Understanding and Lifelong learning Successful Education through the ARTs and culture” (PULSE-ART; grant agreement No. 101178988) (senior researchers Ilze Kačāne and Oksana Kovzele) invited participants to contribute in the activity “The Dancer’s Gene”. Its aim was to highlight the importance of dance as a powerful creator of the public cultural environment and its stable place in the cultural heritage and creative life of Latvia and to involve children and young people, as well as their parents and grandparents, in co-creation activities, exploring parts of Latvian national costumes and performing the basic steps of folk dances. The participants also reflected on the importance of dance in personal life and in promoting cultural awareness and expression.

As part of the Daugavpils University research project “Representation of Living Memory: Cultural, Historical, Literary and Economic Aspects” (No. 14-95/2025/6), the interactive game “Holiday Archaeology: From Sand to QR Codes” was conducted, which was prepared by researchers Maija Grizāne, Oksana Kovzele, Ilze Kačāne and students Lāsma Aiga Lasmane, Inga Skurjate, Andris Saksons, Baiba Lagzdiņa and Nikita Aleksejevs. The youngest participants in the activity solved the word puzzle “Holiday DNA” and the most skilled tested their “Holiday IQ” in the online game. In turn, the greatest interest for both young and old visitors was aroused by the opportunity to participate in archaeological excavations and guess the names of the found artifacts.

Professor Dzintra Iliško, in cooperation with students of the bachelor’s study program “Primary Education Teacher”, master’s study programs “Educational Sciences” and “Society and Organizational Management”, and ERASMUS+ program, offered interactive activities for the youngest participants. They were invited to engage in various interactive tasks and games, express themselves practically, and derive pleasure from the cognitive process and creative cooperation.

Senior researcher Eridiana Oļehnoviča led an educational activity “If I Were a Needle Cucumber!”, in which participants, through practical research tasks, got to know one of Latvia’s invasive plant species – the needle cucumber. Working with herbariums, plant dissection tools, a magnifying glass and a digital microscope, the participants studied the structure of the plant and the adaptations that ensure its rapid spread in the wild. The participants measured, photographed and analyzed various parts of the plant, while simultaneously acquiring research skills and creating a digital business card about this species. The activity was designed to promote interest in the study of invasive species and nature protection, with a special emphasis on how the spread of such plants affects the local ecosystem. The participants not only gained knowledge about the adaptations of the cucumber, but also developed the ability to think critically about the processes taking place in nature and their own role in preserving the environment.

More information:
Professor and senior researcher at IHSS Anita Stašulāne
email: anita.stasulane@du.lv
Senior researcher at IHSS Oksana Kovzele
email: oksana.kovzele@du.lv