Researching sustainability

In the past three-and-a-half years, the University has embarked on ambitious projects aimed at strengthening its administration not only to rationalise the management of its undergraduate programmes but also to build its capacity to conduct research at postgraduate, doctoral and postdoctoral level.

Moreover, we are in the process of building our capacity to work more effectively with the government, industry and civil society at large.

The launch of the Institute for Sustainable Development is yet another cog in the engine of change we are forging. In the next few years we intend to build this institute on two main pillars:

First, the institute is intended to host, augment and aggregate interdisciplinary research and to create cognitive tools to support the formulation and realisation of national plans ultimately intended to improve the quality of life in Malta.

Second, based on the belief that the sustainable development of a knowledge-based economy and society is intrinsically rooted in the ability to leverage creativity and entrepreneurship to create value, the institute will act as an incubator on campus that promotes and catalyses the commercialisation of knowledge and knowhow.

These two main pillars of the institute may sound generic and high-flown. This said, they will be anchored in two very concrete initiatives.

First, building on the experience and expertise accrued at the University in the field of Geographic Information Systems, we intend to encourage and support students, researchers and academics who are studying aspects of Maltese demographics, geography and environment to map their findings digitally in a central GIS repository.

Every year, various studies remain obscure or inaccessible simply because the data is not adequately presented, or the findings are not circulated appropriately. Today we have web tools that allow us to develop accessible online databases whereby users can interact with data and produce their own maps.

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, and indeed these days, the ability to project multiple demographic and other data sets in various layers on a common digital base-map allows one to gain valuable insights at a glance, let alone apply spatial analytical tools which are increasingly becoming important elements of research and are supporting strategic decisions.

For example, a criminology student may map crime hotpots in Malta, an educationalist may trace the main sources for truancy, a sociologist may identify the hotspots for unemployment, a nutritionist may have identified the main spots for malnutrition and obesity in children, a tourism studies student may map the location of all entertainment outlets by category, an environmentalist may map air quality in different zones, a healthcare student may map asthma hotspots...

And let's not even start with the spatial data that is collected every year by geography students... The list of possibilities is endless.

Although these studies may be conducted independently of each other and though most may appear prima facie to be unrelated, once brought together on a common base-map of Malta, one may start gaining valuable insights on the correlation of some phenomenon with others, or of the change in demographic spread of certain phenomena over time, particularly as a measure of the impact of certain policy decisions or events.

Needless to say, the value of such a databank will be increased significantly if the University continues to work closely with government agencies, the civil service, civil society, and industry to enrich the range of such data-sets, particularly if these include the location of a broad range of resources such as schools, banks, churches, shops, museums, restaurants, bus-stops, clinics, police stations, band clubs, restaurants, one-way streets, vineyards, soil type and quality, prevailing winds, ground-water repositories, street lighting, outdoor wi-fi hotspots, waste separation stations, pharmacies and old people's homes.

In short, aggregating such information on a common GIS platform can be a valuable national resource which on the one hand can act as a planning, research and monitoring tool, and on the other can be a source of inspiration for creativity and intelligence for new ventures.

This leads me to the second pillar of the institute. I have asked Dr Saviour Zammit to design and help create a postgraduate programme intended to groom graduates who are interested in participating in the setting up of new business ventures in a tutored framework that supports business start-ups. In pursuit of this postgraduate qualification, it is envisaged that candidates will be groomed to create the groundwork towards the launch of live businesses.

It is envisaged that, given a specific service or product concept, students on this course will be assigned the task of defining and developing a product or service; of conducting market research and researching relevant regulatory or legal constraints; of creating the right brand and developing a marketing strategy; of devising a business plan with appropriate risk analysis, and devising a strategy to raise finance.

All this will take place in a setting where the tutors act as 'advisors' or 'consultants' to the business venture. The ultimate goal would be to secure the necessary capital to launch successful businesses, or if the original prospects are deemed unfeasible, to identify the reasons why the venture is to be abandoned.

Among others, the masters programme would help in the commercialisation of ideas and innovation emerging from within the University and would engage students in feasibility studies and business plan formulation with an eye to becoming future stakeholders in new business ventures or product lines.

We are particularly interested in exploring the possibility of launching this masters programme as a local counterpart or variant in a dual programme with another university.

Indeed, among others, we have been looking closely at the M.Sc. programme in Technology Entrepreneurship offered by University College London, and the M.Sc. programme in Science and Technology Commercialisation offered by the IC2 of the University of Texas at Austin, US.

I am very excited about the prospects for this institute and I hope the work we are about to embark upon will bring the University closer to industry, will increase the profile of the University in international fora, but most important of all, make the University more relevant to the country's socio-economic development.

This is an excerpt of Prof. Camilleri's speech at the launch of the institute on January 22. To contribute ideas, suggestions and comments to the institute or for further information e-mail isd@um.edu.mt or visit the website www.um.edu.mt/isd.

Prof. Camilleri is University rector.