An ingenious invention by Professor Peter Dearden of the University of Otago.

Lab-in-a-Box is a mobile science laboratory, built in a 20 foot shipping container. Professor Dearden developed the idea as a way to take experimental science teaching resources into rural communities and schools. Otago Museum manages Lab-in-a-Box, taking it to communities across Aotearoa New Zealand. Science communicators, researchers, university students and professors from around New Zealand also join teaching sessions as the lab tours the country.

Lab-in-a-Box is not only for school students but also for others who live in our rural communities, especially those who are custodians of our land and water. The Lab-in-a-Box team works with farmers and local businesses and the hands-on practical teaching experience can inspire people in a way that a theoretical explanation sometimes just can’t.