Esplora is now up and running. It is proving to be very popular, as expected, and is set to be one of the foremost visitor attractions in Malta. It is a state of the art interactive science centre spread over more than 20,000 square metres, making it one of the largest in Europe.
The five-star experience starts from the moment our visitors think about coming over and look up Esplora online and then moves on to the wonderful physical spaces and the welcome they receive from our team on arrival.
We encourage all to engage with the exhibits – you will not find any ‘Don’t touch’ signs around. Our aim is to facilitate learning through interactivity and discourse. No formal knowledge of science is necessary to enjoy the experience as the exhibits are aimed at all abilities.
Above all, the interpretation of science has been made relevant to everyday life.
Esplora presents visitors with content that will make them think further and assist in creating a more knowledgeable society rather than attempting to dictate to them.
We aim at ensuring that all our visitors have an outstanding experience by limiting the number of visitors at any given point in time due to capacity. Bookings are encouraged to avoid disappointment.
As a visitor centre we have a limited capacity and can only admit a limited number of people at any given point in time to ensure that the experience is a five-star one.
I was asked to develop the centre by former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi and immediately started building a team that would assist in the planning stages of this very complex project. The fact that this project was conceptualised under the previous administration was acknowledged by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat during the opening ceremony.
The interpretation of science has been made relevant to everyday life
The project was co-financed by EU structural funds, which had been earmarked for the ill-conceived and, thankfully, aborted underground museum in front of St John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta.
Gonzi and all current Nationalist members of Parliament were invited to the opening event on Friday, together with all government MPs.
I had initially been encouraged to go for a purposely-built new building to house the centre but, with the support of my board, decided against doing so. The majestic Bighi complex buildings now housing the centre were in a state of imminent collapse and we felt that we should grab the opportunity to give them a new lease of life, quite apart from the fact that the magnificent location is second to none in the country.
Works started in March 2014. The project will thus have been completed in just over two and a half years with the full support of the present administration. It has involved what were probably the most extensive regeneration works in the past years and was the biggest project in the Cottonera area since World War II.
It is disappointing to see that there are some who are petty enough to bring partisan politics into the picture by speaking about two-year delays and ownership. How can a complex project which was started two and a half years ago have a two-year delay? Did anyone seriously believe that we could have finished the works involved in six months?
Above all else, this is not a Nationalist centre, nor is it a Labour one. It is Malta’s national interactive science centre and we should celebrate the fact that a very dedicated team within the Malta Council for Science and Technology has managed to give us a gem we can all be proud of.
Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando is executive chairman of the Malta Council for Science and Technology.