UWI partners with NGC to Launch Research Expo
The UWI St Augustine Campus has partnered with the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited to host an historic UWI Research Expo from 1st-5th October. The multi-faceted event will feature interactive displays, a symposium on research, enterprise and impact, film screenings, concerts, over 30 mini-workshops, as well as a UWI Marketplace and Kids Fun Park.
Speaking at the official launch of The UWI Research Expo at the Office of the Campus Principal on Thursday (September 5th), Professor Clement Sankat, UWI Campus Principal, promised that it will be “informative, engaging, exciting and memorable”.
“This university has a legacy of creating new knowledge and developing impactful research initiatives that have helped to develop our country and region in a wide range of disciplines in the arts and sciences for over fifty years,” the Campus Principal stated. “Our students and researchers are passionate about what they do, they have an innate curiosity about the world and they continue to partner with local and international stakeholders to develop their innovations.”
Guest speakers at the launch, Pro Vice Chancellor Research at UWI, Professor Wayne Hunte, CEO of the Trinidad Chamber of Industry and Commerce (TTCIC), Ms. Catherine Kumar, and Vice President of Human and Corporate Relations at the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited, Mrs. Cassandra Patrovani-Sylvester, lauded The University for hosting the timely event.
Throughout her presentation, Ms. Kumar continually underscored the importance of public, private and tertiary learning institutions collaborating to support research initiatives.
“The Research Expo is an initiative that the Chamber fully endorses as it will help to put a spotlight on the central role played by research in private sector development and entrepreneurship and in building the competitiveness for our country.”
“It is my hope that this partnership between the UWI St. Augustine Campus and the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago would encourage many other corporate entities to support university research, innovation and knowledge transfer. In this way, the private sector would play its part in ensuring that research not only responds to but also anticipates the needs of society and improves the lives of the people in our country,” Ms Kumar stated.
Similarly, Mrs. Patrovani-Sylvester spoke of the legacy of innovation and entrepreneurship that has made Trinidad and Tobago a leader in the energy sector.
“It is through this sense of adventure, this opening of the mind and harnessing of Trinidadian and Tobagonian ingenuity, that this relatively tiny country has become one of the largest exporters of ammonia and methanol in the world. Our courage and imagination have won us the respect of players many times our size.”
“It is therefore an open question what will come of projects like UWI’s innovation and research initiatives. It’s exciting to think that many of the young minds that will benefit from this project will move on to create, innovate, and maybe even change the face of the country in ways we can’t yet imagine, using technology that hasn’t yet been invented,” she explained during her presentation at the launch.
Next month, the UWI Research Expo kicks-off with a day filled with everything chocolate, at the Cocoa Research Centre’s hosting of World Chocolate Day at The JFK Auditorium on Tuesday 1st October. The next day, the Symposium on Research, Enterprise and Impact will be held at the Learning Resource Centre, which will feature presentations and panel discussions that highlight the key findings of some of the projects that benefitted from dedicated research funding from the government of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as other UWI projects. These presentations will focus on the various initiatives that have contributed to national and/or regional development by creating enterprising solutions, engaging our communities or facilitating evidence-based policy-making.
The Expo itself opens on Thursday 3rd and runs through to Saturday 5th October at the JFK Auditorium and Quadrangle. Here interactive displays including experiments, a gaming zone, zoology museum, as well as a seismic research booth, will be showcased by the Faculties and Units. A wide range of free mini-workshops will also be held at the Campus, providing unique, hands-on learning opportunities to participants: from steel-pan tutorials to Understanding 4G Networks, from Chinese Business Etiquette to Renewable Energy Application workshops, to name just a few. A comprehensive schedule will be available on-line.
It’s an opportunity for the entire family to learn about UWI research at the Expo on Saturday (5th October), while at the same time enjoying products from Units including the University Field Station and Cocoa Research Centre at the UWI Market Place. At the Kids Fun Park, they can enjoy mini-concerts, storytelling and carnival character parades, get close to the animals in the petting zoo, and have fun in the gaming zone, fishing pond, bouncy castle and UWI SPEC sports challenge zone. The Expo is open to the public and guided tours are available for schools.
