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International collaboration and cooperation in Research and Innovation (R&I) represent pivotal catalysts for enhancing the capacity of Malta's R&I ecosystem. The emphasis on cooperation facilitates the exchange of resources, ideas, capacities and expertise across international borders fostering a more diverse and inclusive scientific community, which opens new avenues for innovation and tackling global and shared challenges.
The Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) has been a key player in fostering a culture of research and innovation, particularly through strategic initiatives and investments. The SINO-MALTA Fund originated from an initial agreement on Science and Technological Cooperation between the Government of Malta and the Government of the People's Republic of China, which eventually led to the establishment and development of the Fund that is managed by MCST and the Ministry of Science and…
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Two weeks ago, representatives of the Maltese company AquaBioTech Group had the opportunity to visit several leading Chinese research-performing organisations actively engaged in the ongoing SINO-MALTA Fund. AquaBioTech Group team had the opportunity to meet in person with the research teams that they have been working with for the past three years, as well as developing new relationships and partnerships.
On Monday 23rd October, the AquaBioTech Group team arrived in Beijing to visit the China Agricultural University – National Innovation Center for Digital Fisheries with whom collaborates in the ongoing project AMBULANT and has previously…
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In a significant stride to foster innovation and collaboration, as well as, promote the implementation of Open Science practices and principles at the University of Malta (UM), the UM Library is pleased to announce the launch of a data repository, drUM.
Unveiled this October, drUM is a state-of-the-art data repository, providing a robust platform for UM researchers to deposit their research data. drUM represents a significant advancement in the field of Open Research Data and Research Data Management (RDM). At its core, RDM involves the meticulous planning, organisation, storage, preservation, sharing, and curation of data accumulated during research endeavours. It spans a wide array of practices, policies, and tools necessary for the effective and responsible management of data throughout its life cycle, from collection to documentation, and in adherence to ethical and legal…
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With this online World Food Safety Almanac, the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) hopes to reach many people and to give them insight into the world of global food and feed safety. The Almanac outlines different countries' administrative frameworks in the area of food and feed safety. It also describes the public institutions that carry responsibility within these administrative frameworks. The BfR hopes that the Almanac will serve as a useful tool, informing readers about relevant institutions and helping them to quickly and accurately identify potential collaboration partners for international projects. In this way, the BfR aims to promote the harmonisation of existing methods and processes in food and feed safety and to reduce unintentional duplication of work in this field.
Why is the Almanac…
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In September 2015, representatives of 193 nations met in New York City to tackle the globe’s biggest problems. They broke these down into 169 targets under 17 broad goals, such as ending hunger and poverty, cleaning up the environment and providing health care for all — and made the ambitious pledge to achieve these goals by 2030. We’re now halfway towards that mark: how close is the world to reaching the targets?
Test your knowledge of these crucial issues by taking this quiz accessabile from the below link, which explores progress on eight of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Information and image source:
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On 23 November 2023, the Commission will open two calls for proposals to accelerate the deployment of innovative technologies in Europe. Together, the calls will make up to €4.8 billion available for industry and clean tech players in Europe.
Together, the calls will make up to €4.8 billion available for industry and clean tech players in Europe to support the objectives of the European Green Deal and the Net-Zero Industry Act
Innovation Fund 2023 Call
IF23 Call will offer up to €4 billion for projects in various sectors, including decarbonisation, clean tech…
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The General Assembly of the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership on 19 October approved four slightly amended Intervention Areas that will guide the partnership’s calls and activities in 2024. These areas point to needs for R&I activities and investments that, each in their own way, support the necessary transition into a green and digital ocean economy.
The four Intervention areas in 2024 are: Digital Twins of the Ocean, Blue Economy Sectors, Managing Sea Uses, and Blue Bioresources.
The Partnership’s Intervention Areas are the link between the high-level Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) and the practical implementation through R&I calls and other activities. They are thematic priorities and actionable routes for approaching the range of challenges, tensions, and opportunities that the Blue Economy is facing.…
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One innovative project conducted by researchers at the University of Malta, leading the charge in securing the wine supply chain, is VinoVeritas. The prototype aims to mitigate wine fraud, increase transparency, and provide wine lovers with authentic products they can trust. While VinoVeritas aims to pioneer change in Malta, its principles and methods can inspire similar endeavours worldwide, setting a gold standard for wine authentication. As Mr Gowher Parry, one of the researchers involved in the project, says: ‘In a world filled with choice, authenticity is the finest vintage.’
While VinoVeritas is an initial investigation, it has set ambitious goals in its quest to combat wine fraud. It paves the way for a future merging of blockchain technology with national stamps of approval, prioritising transparency in the wine supply chain. By doing so,…
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A staccato of forward looking discussions and decisions.
The social highlight of the 30th meeting was clearly the performance of Eivind Lorentzen from the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries of Irish folk songs on an onboard luggage-sized balalaika during the meeting dinner. To round it, the performance of Hanna Lee Behrens from Research Council Norway and Gilles Lericolais, from the Prime Minister’s Secrétariat Général de la Mer of France joined in with an improvised dance that seems to have adopted folkloristic Irish choreographies. Bravo, da capo …!
In comparison, crowning the meeting’s programming highlight turns out to be much harder. The candidates of exiting Bord decisions, discussions and ideas were plentiful.
…
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On September 28th and 29th, the Mar-TERA funded ProNiCare project hosted its first Annual Project Meeting at AquaBioTech Group’s facilities in Malta. The meeting highlighted the consortium’s progression into its second stage, as well as the project’s accomplishments and ongoing activities in the fields of anti-corrosion and anti-fouling coating development.
The two-day meeting was organised by project partner AquaBioTech Group in Mosta and was held both in person and online. Participation was limited to the various partners of the ProNiCare project, with participants consisting of a range of interdisciplinary researchers based in Norway at industry research partners SINTEF AS and Bioenvision, as well as scientists based in Germany at partners Alfred Wegner Institute Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, Ankron Water Services, and Kelvion Machine Cooling Systems GmbH.
The…
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The European Research Area is the idea to create a single market for research, innovation and technology. The ERA Policy Agenda 2022-24 proposes concrete actions to make it a reality.
This talk focuses on Action 4 – Research Careers, and more specifically on ResearchComp, the European Competence Framework for Researchers. This tool fosters inter-sectoral mobility by supporting researchers’ transversal skills.
Follow the to visit ResearchComp website:…
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PRIMA’s New Horizon: FUTURE4PRIMA project paves the way for a resilient Mediterranean
In a region grappling with unprecedented challenges, where climate change, resource management, and global disruptions have struck congregationally, the need for collaborative research and innovation efforts became increasingly recognized as crucial and urgent.
In this challenging environment, characterized by obstacles and difficulties, but also moments of inspiration and a collective resolve to work together, the FUTURE4PRIMA project shines as a beacon of action, hope and a catalyst for profound transformation.
A collaborative journey
The recently granted FUTURE4PRIMA project, led by PRIMA Program, will be embarking on a collaborative journey starting on January 2024,…
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The JRC provides independent, evidence-based knowledge and science, supporting EU policies to positively impact society. As a department of the European Commission, the JRC plays a key role at multiple stages of the policy cycle.
The revitalised Strategy 2030, aims to reset, re-imagine and re-energise the JRC with a value proposition rooted in anticipation, integration and impact.
Find out more information via https://joint-research-centre.ec.europa.eu/index_en on:
- the ongoing science and knowledge activities
- the publications issued by the JRC
- access to research infrastructures, scientific tools and trainings
- partnerships, vacancies and opportunities
Get in touch with the JRC…
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Students from the Malta College of Arts, Science, and Technology (MCAST) following courses at the Institute of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) participated in the FIRST Global Robotics Competition in Singapore.
The MCAST team spent much of their summer learning and experimenting with their robot in preparation for the competition. This innovative event enabled them to carry out diverse activities with their robot while helping them advance their knowledge and skills in areas related to their programmes of study.
The MCAST team secured the 4th place in the playoffs during the competition. This result marks an outstanding milestone for Team Malta, achieving such a high ranking for the very first time.
Accompanied by College lecturers and staff the ‘MCAST Robotics Team’ comprised of Anthea Muscat, Julia Muscat, Mirielle Vella, and…
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The European Commission has published the final report of the Mutual Learning Exercise (MLE) on Research and Innovation (R&I) foresight. This Final Report outlines the current state of play in relation to institutionalised R&I foresight and proposes a way forward for extending and strengthening R&I foresight in government. It showcases exemplary R&I foresight practice and related strategic processes, structures and capacities at EU level and in participating countries and beyond. It draws on these country cases to provide a guidance towards a handbook on tailored tools and approaches for applying R&I foresight in a range of contemporary policy contexts, including smart specialisation, mission-oriented policy, citizen engagement and twin transition and disruptions. The Report recommends coordinated efforts between Member States and the EU to invest in the enabling conditions for enhanced R&I foresight in government, in particular…
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Water is essential to life on Earth. It makes up over 50% of our bodies and covers about 71% of the Earth's surface. Only 2.5% of water is fresh, suitable for drinking, agriculture, and most industrial uses. Water is a driving force for people, economies and nature and the foundation of our food. Indeed, agriculture accounts for 72% of global freshwater withdrawals, but like all natural resources, fresh water is not infinite.
Rapid population growth, urbanization, economic development, and climate change are putting the planet’s water resources under increasing stress. At the same time, freshwater resources per person have declined 20% in the past decades and water availability and quality are deteriorating fast due to decades of poor use and management, over extraction of groundwater, pollution and climate change. We risk stretching this precious resource…
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Dr Janina Seubert believes the path to healthier human diets is through the nose.
Seubert, a cognitive neuroscientist at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, is researching the role of smell in shaping public preferences towards foods. She’s curious whether scents could help people embrace protein sources such as insects as alternatives to meat and dairy.
Breaking habits
Alternative proteins also include microalgae and the cells of microorganisms like bacteria and yeast – a group known as “single-cell proteins”. Featuring more of these protein sources in human diets can not only improve nutrition but also ease environmental pressure caused by the worldwide breeding of livestock.
The challenge for researchers like Seubert is to unlock the secrets to people’s willingness to abandon familiar foods…
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On 3rd October 2023 in Barcelona, The Euro-Mediterranean Conference on Science Diplomacy, co-organised by the Union for the Mediterranean in partnership with the European Commission, took place with the aim of highlighting state-of-art of science diplomacy in the Mediterranean, its obstacles and opportunities, and discussing future steps. More than 80 people from 22 countries attended, including scientists, diplomats, and research and innovation officials who had been welcomed the evening prior to Antoni Gaudí’s La Pedrera to learn about La Pedrera Foundation’s Science Academy.
Participants exchanged ideas on highly relevant topics such as research infrastructures, mobility and training, and science advice for foreign policy. Attendees drafted a text summarising their views on the role of science diplomacy in the Mediterranean and both UfM Secretary General Nasser Kamel and Maria Cristina Russo, the Director for…
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The European Commission intends to set up informal working groups composed of individuals from both, the science and diplomacy communities, to develop potential elements of a future European framework for science diplomacy. The main aim of the working groups is to bring together the relevant stakeholders in an innovative format, to develop jointly recommendations in a co-creation process. For more information about science diplomacy and the envisaged European framework, please consult the Explanatory Note, which is offered on the right-hand side of this survey.
Members of the working groups are expected to speak in their personal capacity. Participation in the working groups is not remunerated. By submitting your expression of interest, you confirm that your employer agrees to your candidacy.
For more information about the call, including the selection process and the way of working of the…
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SmartGaze is a project that has received funding through the MCST FUSION Smart Cities programme. The primary objective of the project is to exploit the natural gaze interaction abilities of human beings with devices in their environment. The ultimate aim is to empower individuals with mobility impairments, enabling them to control various devices, such as air conditioners or television sets, by means of eye gaze tracking technology.
During our team’s participation in this year’s Science in the City (SITC) event, we elucidated the diverse modalities of eye gaze tracking. The vision-based approach, commonly referred to as videooculography (VOG), involves the real-time processing of a sequence of images capturing the subject’s eyes, to determine the user’s point of gaze. Alternatively, electrodes can be strategically positioned around the user’s eyes to record the electrical activity generated during eye…
