School for Graduate Studies and Research
The second initiative was seeking nominations from The UWI for the Earthshot Prize. This prize was founded by Prince William and The Royal Foundation in 2020, and is the world’s most prestigious and ambitious environmental prize, inspired by President Kennedy’s “Moonshot” challenge. The third initiative was entitled “Regional Landscaping Reviews”, to be implemented by The Templeton World Charity Foundation. This initiative explored the feasibility of establishing a regional Collaborative Research Hub that will provide opportunities to advance scientific research on topics and outcomes central to human flourishing. The CCSA engaged The UWI, through the University Office of Research, to seek applicants to undertake landscaping reviews which will help guide future investments through the Collaborative Research Hub. Innovation and Entrepreneurship Bootcamp The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Bootcamp Workshop, organised by the SGSR in collaboration with other relevant University units, provided a unique opportunity for University employees, including I&E practitioners, researchers, administrators and students, to enhance their entrepreneurial skills and knowledge and connect with like-minded individuals within the University. The Workshop comprised eight modules covering ideation, market strategy, business planning, pitching, financial sustainability, legal aspects, and The UWI Innovation Ecosystem. The feedback from participants emphasised the Workshop’s quality, the relevance of its content, the expertise of the facilitators, and the interactive format, and clearly indicated the Workshop’s success in meeting participants’ needs and fostering an innovation and entrepreneurship culture within The UWI. Suggestions for improvement included incorporating more hands-on activities, allowing more Q&A time, and providing follow-up support.
North-West University (NWU), South Africa A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between North-West University, South Africa and The UWI was developed to guide the implementation of collaborative activities between the two universities. The North-West University will be sending a delegation to The UWI in the upcoming academic year to formally sign the MoU and to have discussions to identify initial activities. ALIGNMENT INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (I&E) Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator (CCSA) Investor Matching Initiative The School continues to serve as The UWI contact point for interfacing with the Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator (CCSA). The overall goal is the financing of projects to transform the Caribbean into a Climate Smart Zone, fostering regional resilience, social development, and economic growth. The first collaborative initiative was on possible funding of UWI research through business investment opportunities and grants. The Office worked with the CCSA and UWI staff to facilitate the development of proposals with commercial potential for submission to the CCSA for presentation at its Matchmaking Forum; this provided an opportunity for innovators to pitch project ideas to potential investors and secure financing for project implementation and financial returns to investors.
The Directors, Graduate Studies and Research played a key role in the development of the programme and provided outstanding support and assistance in reaching out to the research Supervisors on their respective campuses to share the invitation to this meeting. A total of 376 persons registered for the meeting, and from the comments and feedback during the meeting, the presentations were very well received by the participants
INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIPS Open Society University Network (OSUN)
The UWI joined the Open Society University Network (OSUN) and discussions are underway to explore the possibility of UWI students participating in OSUN online courses. Arising from partnerships formed during the OSUN Chief Academic Officers Meetings in Vienna which the Pro Vice-Chancellor attended, a collaborative seminar will be co-hosted at the Mona Campus. Northwestern University Several meetings were held with colleagues from Northwestern University, Illinois, USA, resulting in a number of joint activities/initiatives. Researchers from Northwestern University participated in the 24 th Annual SALISES Conference at the St. Augustine Campus. The UWI will host a journalism student from Northwestern University through an internship programme, and Northwestern researchers will present at the 18th Annual Caribbean Child Research Conference in November 2023. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is being established to guide the collaboration.
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