Because everyone deserves a world that makes sense
At Terra Cognita, we believe that knowledge only matters if it makes sense—personally, socially, and collectively.
Today, knowledge is more accessible than ever, yet more fragmented and harder to grasp. Information surrounds us, but without context or reflection, it rarely becomes understanding. This disconnect feeds confusion, disorientation, and disengagement—from ourselves, from others, and from the decisions that shape our lives.
That’s where Terra Cognita steps in.
We bring together philosophy, brain science, and human data to explore how people make sense of themselves and the world. But we don’t just provide explanations—we create sensory and participatory experiences that invite people to engage with deep ideas directly.
Each project follows our “III” method:
– Identify the obstacles that hinder understanding,
– Innovate using sensory design and cognitive insights to bring new concepts to life,
– Implement in ways that fit the ages, places, and perspectives we intervene in.
Because making sense isn't about having all the answers. It's about asking the right questions—together.
Our Active Programmes
Understanding attention
We live through our attention. It shapes what we see, what we feel, what we remember. Yet paradoxically, we can’t sense our own attention. Unlike vision or touch, attention is invisible—private, shifting, and often taken for granted.
That’s a problem. Because attention determines not just what we notice, but who we become. And when we don’t understand how attention works—how it’s pulled, fragmented, or shaped by our surroundings—we lose agency over our lives, our learning, and our shared realities.
Our programme "live gaze" invites individuals and institutions to re-engage with attention as both a concept and a sensory experience. This programme has been widely using cutting-edge mobile eye-tracking tools and participatory formats to make the invisible visible: giving people a chance to observe, share, and reshape how they look at the world—and how the world looks back.
Building a taste for science
Genetics, chemistry, climate science—they shape the world we live in. But too often, they feel abstract, remote, or inaccessible. What if we could taste them instead?
Science in a Glass is our sensory-driven programme that turns everyday drinks—wine, coffee, tea, and beyond—into portals for deeper understanding. These aren’t just beverages. They’re living systems, cultural artifacts, and scientific puzzles. Through guided tastings, participatory experiments, and open dialogue with researchers, we make science something people can savour, not just study.
A Peek Inside the Workings of All Sorts of Minds
We can’t see our own thoughts, or feel our brain firing. And yet, everything we know, remember, feel, and imagine depends on this hidden organ. Understanding the brain—ours and others’—is one of the deepest scientific and philosophical challenges of our time.
Inside Minds is our programme that turns the science of the brain and mind into immersive, shareable experiences. But we don’t just focus on human brains. We look across species—from penguins to naked mole rats to insects—to ask what different brains can teach us about perception, cognition, and life itself.
Understanding Social Movements
We speak of "social movements" but what moves people to act together or sometimes turn against each other? What are the collective dynamics here at play, and what do they trigger in our individual minds, hearts and bodies?
This programme brings together social scientists, neuroscientists, artists and choreographers to explore what inclusion, cohesion, but also disagreement can feel and look like—not just in theory, but in the body. By focusing on how people move together, hesitate, mirror, or resist, we uncover new dimensions of group dynamics that language often hides.
Join our volunteer community
Become a valuable member of our expanding volunteer community. Discover the myriad opportunities to contribute to our cause.
Support an existing program
For just $10 a month, you can help connect people with the wonders of science. Your generous contribution will empower individuals and communities by making knowledge more meaningful, one person at a time.
Support new programs
Our work is grounded in evidence. Join us in advancing research and developing new programs aimed at recognizing and overcoming challenges in science communication, ensuring science has a meaningful impact on those who need it most.
