Along with some 500 cities and towns across America, Princeton will hold a March for Science this Saturday С Earth Day С in solidarity with the March for Science taking place in Washington. D.C. The local event, which begins at Hinds Plaza at 10 a.m., will focus on education and community, with an hour of speakers and science-related activities preceding a march to the Princeton Battle Monument.

“We’ll salute the bust of Einstein on the way,” said Princeton resident Nicole Pezold-Hancock, who got the idea for the local march soon after the inauguration of President Donald Trump. “I’m not a scientist, but I’m a science supporter,” she continued. “When it became clear that there was going to be a very different approach to climate science, and just a general lack of interest or dismissiveness about scientific research, I started to get concerned.”

Ms. Pezold-Hancock, who comes from a family of scientists and physicians, began talking with friends about holding a local march. “I live in a place where science is a huge part of our economy, not just with Princeton University but with the major laboratories located here,” she said. “When I heard this rumbling about having a march in Washington in support of robust funding for science and free communication of scientific ideas, I thought, my God, Princeton has to have its own march.”

Her idea snowballed. As of this Monday, 800 people were registered to attend the local event. About 1,000 are expected, weather permitting, Ms. Pezold-Hancock said. The rally at Hinds Plaza will include speakers Robert Goldston, a professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University; and Samuel Wang, a professor of molecular biology and neuroscience, also at the University. Kevin Wilkes, local architect and activist, is master of ceremonies.

Science activities will be led by the Princeton Family YMCA, enrichment program scienceSeeds, C.H.A.O.S. Lab of the University’s School of Architecture, the University’s Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, and others. “Kids can make ‘gooey garbage,’ which is very hands-on,” Ms. Pezold-Hancock said. “And the C.H.A.O.S. Lab will do a bike-powered blender making smoothies. There will be an Ask-the-Scientist Table where people can find about science careers. So it’s almost like a science festival for the first hour.”

Concurrently, a march in Trenton will begin outside the city’s War Memorial at 10 a.m. Among the speakers are Matthew Buckley, Rutgers University assistant physics professor and founder of the New Jersey March for Science; Kimberly Cook-Chennault, Rutgers associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering; former New Jersey Governor James Florio; Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club; Assemblyman and physicist Andrew Zwicker; and several others.

The Princeton event is headed by the Science and Environment Committee of Princeton Marching Forward, a local activist group that was formed following the women’s marches that took place all over the globe this past January.

“Our focus in Princeton is a little bit different than in Trenton. We didn’t want to steal their thunder,” said Ms. Pezold-Hancock. “Theirs is more of a political rally. Ours is more community-oriented, with an education focus.”

Participants in the Princeton march are encouraged to bring signs that highlight the importance of science in protecting health, safety, and the environment, as well as funding for research. Children can submit their signs in a contest for prizes.

“It is an inherently political act for us to gather and march together, but we are striving to keep it non-partisan and positive,” said Ms. Pezold-Hancock. “The focus is on supporting science education. It is for something, not against something.”