LAUNCH OF THE FAS SCIENCE CHALLENGE 2005 – GRADUATE PROJECT

Monday 11 ^th July 2005

I am delighted to be here today for the launch of the FÁS Science Graduate Challenge, now in its third year. This partnership initiative between the Irish state training agency and the Florida Space Authority, which is one of the world leaders in high technology, has been hugely important for Irish education and science. It is part of a Government strategy that has seen education, training and science promoted from ancillary roles to the mainstream of social and economic policy.

The FÁS Science Challenge Graduate Project, which is now in its third year, has given careers in science a new and welcome prominence in Ireland. The opportunities for participating graduates are, of course, immense, as is appreciated by the hundreds of applicants who now seek places each year. The successful 18 young people here today were selected from 70 finalists and are to be congratulated on their achievement.

They will return to Ireland after enjoying access to the unrivalled scientific and technical expertise of NASA, the Florida Institute of Technology, the University of Central Florida, and to that of private sector enterprises such as Boeing, Dynamac, Lockhead Martin and other international leaders in their field. For at least some of the participants I have no doubt it will be a life-changing experience opening new vistas of endeavour, as well as career opportunities.

However it would be doing the programme a disservice to see it merely as a reward for young Irish scientists who have excelled in their chosen field, or as the result of an academic contest. It is not just about the outstanding work done by each of the individual winners but also about the fact that they each also have something unique to contribute as team members to a very special project – the hands-on exploration of the dynamics of space on site of their prestigious host organisations.

The programme is designed to introduce participants to the problems of space exploration through the study of life sciences, rocketry and robotics, followed by a look at aerospace design, payload factors and of course the human factor, before turning to their ‘Mission to Mars’ project. As Dr Larry Chew, Education Consultant of the Florida Space Authority has put it team members, ‘will have to become true scientists to make this Mission to Mars a success’.

Over the coming six weeks they will not only learn more about other disciplines but how to work effectively with colleagues in those disciplines. If past performance is anything to go by, the experience will stimulate them to even greater efforts. Of the 14 participants in last year’s programme eight are now undertaking PhDs, three are taking their Masters’ Degree and the other three are employed in their chosen fields.

This is part of a learning continuum that the Irish Government is committed to spreading across our entire workforce so that Ireland can consolidate its position as a leading knowledge based society. In this way we can continue to attract investment from the US and be part of the wider global economy.

We are already significant players, punching well above our weight. A third of all personal computers sold in Europe are supplied by companies based in Ireland and we are the largest exporter of software in the world after the US. We are also major players in the international pharmaceutical and chemical sectors.

Much of this sustained growth has been due to the decision by Government to invest heavily in science, education and training. Overall the Government has committed €2.54 billion under the National Development Plan to research, technological development and innovation. Key investments aimed at building Ireland’s research capability are now underway through Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), the Programme of Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI), and through increased support aimed at building R&D capability and capacity in industry and promoting collaboration between industry and the third level sector.

Under the current plan, a sum of €646 million has been allocated to Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) to support knowledge creation and human capital development, which are the corner stones of a knowledge economy. The funding is being used to recruit and retain researchers and research groups capable of developing high-impact, internationally significant discoveries in the fields underpinning biotechnology and information and communications technology. Since its establishment in 2000, SFI has awarded over €460 million to more than 600 projects to support more than 1000 outstanding researchers and their teams. These efforts have been coupled with the establishment of the research councils for social sciences and engineering and technology (IRCHSS, IRCSET) and the introduction of an incremental tax credit for R&D expenditure all of which are critical in creating the knowledge and driving the discoveries to underpin future competitiveness in key industries.

As a parent and a former teacher one of the things that most strikes me, reading the profiles of the 18 participants in the current FÁS Science Challenge Graduate Project, is the important role that parents and teachers played in the decision to pursue a career in the sciences. One of the students, for instance, attributes his interest in chemical engineering in large part to his teacher at second level and another had an enthusiastic biology teacher who made the subject interesting. Others have said that family encouraged their interest in science and all cite family support as an important factor in their decision to embark on a scientific career.

We need to cultivate an attitude that values scientific curiosity and endeavour in the same way and we must strive to promote a more positive attitude towards the sciences through our schools, third level institutions and through training agencies such as FÁS.

Many initiatives are underway in Ireland to encourage people to get involved in science. These include, within my own Department of Enterprise Trade & Employment, the establishment of Discover Science & Engineering, (DSE), the integrated awareness programme which aims to promote a greater understanding and appreciation of science amongst students, their parents, teachers and the general public and of which this competition is a vital component. At present DSE is focussing particularly on the primary age group but obviously has links in the secondary and third-level sectors as well. But I am sure I am speaking to the converted here when I say that DSE also has a role in ensuring that our children in particular and the public in general are comfortable with science and scientific concepts, able to make sound and reasoned judgments, if science is to fully contribute to their own and society’s advantage.

A key initiative being undertaken by DSE in conjunction with the Department of Education and Science is Discover Primary Science. This programme aims to encourage a greater interest in and consequent uptake of careers in science, particularly among primary school children and I am pleased especially that the programme includes schools in areas of disadvantage and special needs schools.

Another new initiative is the “Secondary Teacher Assistant Researchers” (STAR) programme (in association with Irish Science Teachers Association, the Department of Education and Science, Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and my own Department). Under this programme SFI, is investing up to EUR€500k to give more than 50 second-level science and math teachers per year the opportunity to conduct research in Irish laboratories. The goal is to help teachers renew their interest in science as researchers, connect them with science faculty in the universities and institutes of technology, and enhance the teaching of science related subjects across the educational system.

Today’s FÁS Science Challenge is, of course, another key element in the DSE strategy. The high media profile awarded to the programme and the rising number of applicants each year shows that it is working. In addition to this Graduates’ Project, we also have an apprenticeship project which provides work experience for apprentices nearing the end of their training through the services of the Florida Space Authority and Florida Institute of Technology; six month internships for both graduates and apprentices with NASA based supporting companies and a week long Science Challenge initiative for primary school children.

One of the great attractions of the Science Challenge is its flexibility, so that all concerned can maximise on the opportunities presented. I know that our American partners have been pleasantly surprised by the high standard of Irish participating graduates and apprentices. Last year some of the work by interns from the Biomerit Institute at University College Cork on cultivating radishes in space conditions was so successful that the host company Dynamac has extended the project.

This sort of collaboration helps Ireland stay at the head of the scientific posse in Europe. You might be interested to learn that, in the European context, only this month the European Commissioner for Science and Research, Janez Potocnik, launched a ‘Plants for the Future’ research programme in conjunction with the European Plant Science Organisation and the European Bioindustry Association. The programme aims to increase the competitiveness of the agri-food and forestry industries and is a prime example of an inter-disciplinary approach to research as advocated by this graduate programme.

Ends / ETE 1386