This week, the University of Guyana (UG) will host its inaugural exhibition of innovations at the National Library, where more than 40 of what it describes as “ground-breaking innovative projects” created by staff and students will be on display.
According to a press release from the university, the initiative was birthed by UG’s Institute of Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (UGIRIE) and will see exhibits which will “stimulate scientific inquiry, promote business opportunities” and publicise some of its applied research work, “which could impact national development.”
The exhibition is slated for Wednesday, June 8, and Thursday, June 9.
UG said that among the innovations to be showcased are agricultural applications, including phytogenic ameliorants to enhance gastrointestinal health in poultry; equipment pertinent to the coconut and other value chains; roll-on and roll-off forage applications for small-ruminant feed; several types of food production, including mushrooms such as indigenous varieties; renewables such as applications for concrete blocks; DNA typing of sweet potato vars and its application to industry, and bioethanol applications.
The two-day event is free of cost and will commence from 12 noon on June 8, and continue on June 9 from 9 am to 5 pm.
According to the release, the opening ceremony can be viewed online at https://www.facebook.com/uniofguyana/ and it has also advised that a streaming gallery will be open with selected aspects of the projects to be streamed via the University of Guyana’s Facebook page.
According to the press release, Professor of Practice, Dr. Pat Francis has expressed the University’s excitement at being able to host the event as it is the first time that key stakeholders and members of the public are being afforded the opportunity of an up-close look at the “ground-breaking and innovative applied research” being done by staff and students of the University.
The release quoted Professor Francis as saying, “The University of Guyana produces more than 100 applied research pieces every year in collaboration with several agencies and other Universities. We are particularly pleased to commence the process of making these findings available to Guyanese entrepreneurs and householders.”
Meanwhile, it said that Vice-Chancellor Professor Paloma Mohamed-Martin remarked that “The student research culture is powerful and has been continuous for decades, it’s time our university showcased this, and we are delighted that Prof. Francis and her tiny dedicated team in UGIRIE have been able to bring this exciting first showing into the public space. They have also invited schools and partners. I think this is just fantastic!”
According to the release, the UGIRIE was set up in 2019 with a mandate of bridging the gap between knowledge generation and utilisation through strategic partnerships, thereby facilitating start-ups and product improvement; with the ultimate intention to facilitate “the utilisation of Guyana’s vast natural resources to help generate new products and services, thereby playing its part in stimulating Guyanese innovation and technologies driven by rigorous scientific research and practice which is happening inside the University.”
The release said that the UGIRIE hopes to help transform our economy through the development, documentation, dissemination and marketing of research findings and innovations in science, arts and humanities to industry.
It added that the UGIRIE is a Technology Transfer Facility (TTF) which provides a platform for researchers and innovators within the University and allied institutions/individual researchers to share new products and services with the industry, while stating that the programmes and courses offer practical approaches to establishing, accelerating and scaling up businesses.
