On Friday February 28, 2025, more than 100 students from 16 VSB schools gathered at Langara College for the annual Vancouver District Science Fair (VDSF).  Students eagerly stood by their projects ready to present their work to equally interested judges. When not sharing the findings of their work, students took part in fun breakout sessions organized by Langara College.

The District fair serves as a qualifying round for the Greater Vancouver Regional Science Fair, one of 13 regional fairs that take place annually in British Columbia and the Yukon. From there, students can advance to the Canada-Wide Science Fair and international competitions. 

Science fairs open a world of possibilities for students. For many they are a launching pad for further inquiry and collaboration with local scientists. The community aspect and the satisfaction of creative problem-solving combined with feedback from teachers and industry experts keep students coming back year-after-year. Some students have presented projects at VDSF every year throughout their high school career. Many of these VDSF veterans have gone on to find success at the regional and national levels, and a few returned this year as guests. Jonathan Leung, a Grade 12 student at Lord Byng and 4-time Canada-Wide Science Fair finalist, took on a new role as part of the student volunteer team.

Grade 6 students from Kerrisdale and Tecumseh MACC also participate in VDSF as Exhibition projects. Although these students are not old enough to advance to the regional fair, they too benefit from the experience of presenting their work to the local community. 

Victoria Jung, VSB chair, was in attendance to hand out certificates to both these groups: the VDSF veterans and the exhibition projects.

“It’s very moving to see the youngest and oldest participants here with me and I encourage all students to be open to the possibility of sharing their learning and giving back to their community,” says Jung.

Students cherish the friendships that come from encounters at science fairs and often find a future project partner with common interests.

Angie, a Grade 10 student, partnered with a student in Grade 8 because of their mutual interest in investigative work.  

“Well, we met each other last year at Greater Vancouver Regional Science Fair.  I really liked his energy and his work so when I saw him at Churchill, I invited him to do a joint project on glaucoma,” she explains.  “We’re going to do this together - The Dream Team!”

VDSF is only possible with the hard work of volunteers, many of whom were science teachers in the district.  

This year is a special milestone.

“This marks VDSF's 25th year. It was started in 2001 by Len Reimer (Edith Cavell Elementary school), then carried onward by Devon Ross (now SD 43), Albert Chang (now at an independent school), and Jeanne Yu (now a guidance counselor). VDSF has run every year except 2012 due to job action. It squeaked ahead of COVID-lockdown in 2020, went virtual for 2021 and 2022. Then the fair went to its current hybrid format in 2023,” notes Justina Chan, a science teacher at Tupper Secondary who has steered VDSF for the past eight years. 

Langara College has hosted VDSF since 2013. In addition to providing a venue and onsite support, Langara faculty are actively involved as judges, safety officers and breakout session presenters. This year's topics included forensic biology, mortuary science, organ donation, bioinformatics, exercise performance analysis, and hackathons.

“Their tremendous support of VDSF over the years has been crucial to helping VDSF achieve this milestone,” says Chan.

We look forward to following the more than 60 projects that have advanced to the Greater Vancouver Regional Science Fair (GVRSF). For more highlights and updates, please follow VDSF on Instagram: @vdsf.projects2025