Hips 4 Eternity
Let us set a precedent
A changing University greeted me when I returned to Malta four years ago. This culture of change has only snowballed as new institutes, centres, and facilities have opened up, backed by personnel that are pushing its research portfolio. To continue supporting this progress the Research Trust (RIDT) is launching a Staff Contribution Scheme as from January 2015.Continue reading
An Eventful Research Summer
Maltese summers can be harsh and exhausting. Luckily, this year’s was not a summer to be particularly remembered for its heatwaves or for its breathless nights. Still it is always better to be on holiday, enjoying a sea breeze or, even better, enjoying the beauty of some remote, cool mountainous resort. Some were lucky enough to spend their summer in such manner. Other not so lucky ones, continued with their routine while dreaming of next year’s summer.Continue reading
Students for Research
Education is a word we are constantly bombarded with. After sitting for hundreds of exams, having read thousands of notes, spent endless nights fighting with coffee machines and sticky notes, you probably know the hardships of our education system. However, education is much more than books and lectures.
Education is a way of life. It changes us and can bring out our potential. Our University is the place we all come to learn, work, and ultimately spend most our time. Be it students, staff members, academics, or researchers, it is of utmost importance for us all to be in line with why we are all here, to nurture education and develop our society’s future.
The University has been growing rapidly in the past decade. Construction is ongoing, labs are being renovated, and the number of postgraduate courses and doctorates has grown exponentially. Naturally, research has spiked up too, and the UoM is also spearheading a few world-class projects.
Why am I putting so much importance on research? The answer is simple. Without research Malta can never make a leap forward to improve our quality of life. The main aim of research is always that of identifying and exploring new knowledge that will ultimately make our world a better place.
Locally, researchers are not just donning white lab coats. Maltese researchers are diving deep into Mediterranean waters to explore native aquatic species, some are crawling face down in garigue environments to investigate local flora and fauna, while others are breaking new grounds to find the Maltese genetic components responsible for cancer and other deadly diseases.
Students perform research for their dissertations (see the student section of Think). This is when a student will first experience hands-on research. A university supported to conduct top research is necessary to give students more real-world research opportunities. Encouraging a research mentality within the early stages of the University experience is essential to foster a lifetime commitment towards our alma mater.
Unfortunately, the biggest obstacle in research is funding. This problem is worldwide. But whilst other countries have already made substantial efforts to fight this problem, locally we have just started to get the ball rolling to instill the much needed awareness and culture around research funding.
Investing in research is essential and we are seeing an initial good response from society. People are slowly starting to realise that through research we are not only creating a hope for future generations, but we are also aiding the education of our children and helping our country’s socio-economic well-being. In the past year we have managed to raise important funds for cancer and kidney research, and other important causes.
The University Research Trust’s latest initiative, in collaboration with the KSU, is a project whereby students can directly donate funds towards research within their faculties. Dubbed as the UoM Caution Money Scheme, this initiative lets final year students from the Faculties of Engineering, ICT and Sciences donate their laboratory caution money towards research projects and equipment in their faculties. Ten students, who decided to set an example for their peers to follow, launched this scheme during an annual KSU event, showing that everyone can contribute towards research at University.
We are now encouraging all final year students from these faculties to follow suit and also contribute towards research. Malcolm Zammit, one of the students who already donated the money appealed to his peers saying, ‘This small deposit we had left in our first year is negligible when compared to the amount that the University has invested in all of us. Today, I feel it my natural duty to give something small back to this place which has given me so much.’
The initiative has also encouraged other student organisations to donate. ELSA has just given the Research Trust some funds for University research. These initiatives are all helping towards fostering more awareness and funding so that together we can continue leaving a tangible impact on our campus and society.
Photography by Sean Mallia
Mario Cachia is the Campaign Officer of the RIDT, which is the University’s Research Trust aimed towards fostering awareness and fundraising for high-calibre local research. More information on how to participate in the UoM Caution Money Scheme will be published shortly. Please visit our website www.ridt.eu to donate online, and our Facebook page www.facebook.com/RIDTMalta for the latest events and initiatives.
A Good Cause for Research
Why should public, private, and non-profit entities invest in research? Several reasons exist.
Firstly, research is key for our future. Research helps drive new knowledge that will improve the world. Society depends on research, across a wide range of disciplines, to strengthen our quality of life and sustain economic stability. By raising funds for University research the RIDT is surely not trying to reinvent the wheel. On the contrary, throughout Europe, the US and Asia public universities are enhancing their Government funding through various initiatives to sustain important research. Universities all across the globe appeal to public entities, private individuals and NGOs to fund research and invest in our society’s future.
Locally, we have just started scraping the surface of fundraising for research. Recently, the RIDT received a number of important donations which shall serve to continue fostering local research. In the first of its kind, we received €55,000 from local NGO ‘Action for Breast Cancer Foundation’ (ABCF), raised through the ALIVE Cycling Challenge. They are being used to launch a Ph.D. studentship in breast cancer research. The Lifecycle Foundation has also donated €70,000 towards kidney disease research. These NGOs have followed a stream of public and private entities, as well as students, who have been donating money for research for the last three years.
Secondly, don’t you want to be part of something bigger? You probably cannot find the cure for cancer yourself, but everyone can contribute to make that a possibility. As the University’s Research Trust, we do not only want to attract big corporate companies or NGOs to donate money, but we also want you — the students, the alumni, the professionals, the workers, the parents, to realise that donating for research is a noble cause. A recent Christmas campaign at the University of Malta that was spearheaded by KSU, the UoM staff and the Chaplaincy managed to raise €12,000 from students, staff, and academics on campus. A third of these funds were donated to the RIDT, which were devolved to the Department of Anatomy. They will be invested in specialised research projects focusing on specific strands of cancer, such as leukaemias, sarcomas, brain tumours, breast and colon cancer.
Research affects our day-to-day lives. Though research discoveries take time and need constant investment to benefit our society, we can come together as a Maltese community by investing in research for good causes. Ultimately, let us imagine a world where we have cured all major diseases, where we can move objects with our thoughts, and unravel the mysteries of the universe.Imagine, and let’s make it happen!
RIDT is the University’s Research Trust aimed towards fostering awareness and fundraising for high-calibre local research. We aim to achieve this by raising funds for various research projects undertaken at the University of Malta. Please visit www.ridt.eu to donate and our Facebook page on www.facebook.com/RIDTMalta for more information about our latest events and initiatives.
The future is bright, The future is research
Today’s world is unforgiving; we cannot slack. Be it students in academic pursuits, or executives in professional ones, the need to create new things and innovate is essential to keep up with ever-changing times. The RIDT believes that University and its students are the cradle of all needed change. Our aim is to continue promoting and stimulating research within our Campus community. We believe that our students carry this important message best.
For this reason, the RIDT has embarked on campaigns and initiatives to gather more interest and feedback from University students and alumni. The RIDT participated in the annual KSU Freshers’ Week. Here we met and greeted thousands of students just starting out their degrees. At the same time, we launched our Facebook page to regularly update and engage with students. We succeeded in attracting nearly 1,000 followers in less than two months from launch. We felt that this was not enough, and in order to further engage our online audience, we enticed them to become closer to University research. With this in mind, we launched a fresh online competition, the UoM Research Challenge, where participants had to answer questions about research happening at University. The competition was sponsored by GO, who donated an iPad Mini for the fastest person to complete the challenge. We have plenty of fresh, innovative concepts lined up for the New Year.
Throughout December, the RIDT is collaborating with KSU and l-Istrina to promote research within the University and the local community. We want to reach out to raise awareness that research is a tool that can make everyone’s lives better. Many people throughout the world suffer from various socio-economic problems, ranging from deadly diseases and famine to poverty and unemployment. Through research, we can truly make a difference to all of these people, and we want to start here, from home. By fostering a sense of awareness and belonging within our students and alumni, we can look forward to a bright future. In this future, we would be proud of a University making a difference in Malta and the rest of the world.
RIDT is the University’s Research Trust aimed towards fostering awareness and fundraising for high-calibre local research. For more information, visit
www.ridt.eu or find RIDT on Facebook www.facebook.com/RIDTMalta
Christopher Curmi, winner of the UoM Research Challenge, awarded an iPad Mini by the RIDT CEO Wilfred Kenely. Photo by Edward Duca
Author: Mario Cachia, RIDT Campaign Officer
Racing into the Future
Way back in 2007, a dedicated group of six people put together a formula-style race car in just six months to compete in a prestigious international competition called FSAE. Since then no other team has participated. Students were always interested to build a racing car but found it too hard to actually carry out — the underlying logistics were simply too much.
In December 2012, a group of motivated university students founded the University of Malta Racing (UoMR) team. Their mission statement: ‘To encourage and facilitate students of the University of Malta to unite together as a team in the planning, design and construction of a Formula-style race car and to participate in the Formula SAE, or similar competitions.” They were brought together by a love of cars, engines, speed and a competitive spirit.
The 2007 team placed 17th out of 20 teams. The new team has stiff competition and huge challenges to overcome for the upcoming competition in July 2014. Foreign universities compete every year and build a database of knowledge and experience which students use to continue improving their cars. For the UoM to compete eff
ectively with top-class international universities, there must be a strong framework which supports and encourages students from every faculty, especially the Faculty of Engineering. To overcome this challenge the team extensively researched the parts, materials needed and procedure to build a competitive vehicle. The PR and Finance team of the UoMR also drew up a sponsorship proposal, which was used to attract sponsors and collaborators. Without them the project would not be possible.
The team is currently working on the car’s design. At the same time they are fabricating some parts and structures inside their workshop at University. They are looking for financial or in kind assistance from driving enthusiasts and organisations. •
For more information on UoMR and contact details visit: uomracing.com. The University of Malta’s research trust, RIDT, fully supports the UoM racing team initiative. The trust aims to sustain and grow the UoM’s research activity. Please consider making a contribution at www.ridt.eu
Dentists on wheels
The RIDT is supporting a community project that is being spearheaded by the Faculty of Dental Surgery (University of Malta). The project should improve the Maltese population’s quality of life and supply vital oral health information.
The Mobile Dental Clinic Project will carry out research through standardised scientifically established methods to determine the oral health status of Malta. As a result of scarce epidemiological data, this particular health status is not known, although various factors suggest it may be suboptimal. With such a mobile unit at hand, the Faculty will be able to study (and prevent) all areas of oral health. It will be in an excellent position to reach all sectors of society, providing routine dental care as an outreach clinic. The clinic will visit all localities in Malta and Gozo, focusing on underprivileged communities, homebound elderly patients,
special-needs schools, and institutionalised people. Equipped with modern facilities on par with any dental clinic, this unit will be manned by staff members of the Faculty of Dental Surgery together with final year dental students.
To finance this community project, the RIDT has found the backing of a number of corporates and institutions who have pledged their support through their donations. The clinic is estimated to cost around €120,000. The mobile dental clinic is expected to be on the road this Autumn.
Funding of academic chairs by FIMBank and The Alfred Mizzi Foundation
As from the next academic year, the Faculty of Economics, Management and Accountancy of the University of Malta will be providing a course in International Trade Finance which is being sponsored by FIMBank Malta plc and the International Factor Group (IFG). The same faculty will also introduce a course in Digital Marketing which is being sponsored by The Alfred Mizzi Foundation. These new additions will offer a unique educational experience in modern commercial activities to both local and foreign students. The financing of the courses has been facilitated by the RIDT.
Cycling for breast cancer research
Forty cyclists will be covering an endurance route of 720 km. They will cycle from London to Brussels to Paris this July to raise funds for breast cancer research at the University of Malta. For this initiative to happen, the RIDT has teamed up with two not-for-profit organisations, Action for Breast Cancer Foundation and ALIVE Charity Foundation. The former is an organisation that brings together breast cancer survivors, patients, and well-wishers, while ALIVE consists of a group of cyclists are dedicating their cycling efforts towards good causes.
The cyclists are currently undergoing training to get in shape for this challenge. Their objective is to each raise €1,800.