Universities renew collaboration pact to help Wales thrive

by By Aled Blake - 02/03/2010

"Five of Wales’ leading universities yesterday said they would co-operate even more to “drive forward” Wales’ knowledge economy.
"

The universities’ St David’s Day Declaration was renewed by Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, Glamorgan and Swansea – with the commitment to “act together, combining their strengths and talents in research and innovation to enhance the knowledge economy in Wales”.

The five universities represent more than 70% of all students in Wales and more than 95% of the nation’s research activity. With a combined annual turnover of approaching £1bn, including a significant contribution from international sources, the big five represent a substantial economic generator for Wales.

In a joint statement, the five university vice-chancellors said: “We know that, collectively, our staff and our students can offer real help to business, the public sector and to individuals. Our first priority was to help Wales work its way out of the current recession and, beyond that, to create a vibrant knowledge-led society and economy that puts Wales ahead of the game.

“As we celebrate St David’s Day it’s an ideal opportunity to recognise the group’s achievements and renew our commitment to making the declaration work for the benefit of the Wales’ knowledge economy.”

The St David’s Day Declaration was signed in 2009 to build in collaboration “on the intellectual capital and academic excellence of universities” in Wales.

Universities pointed to a number of projects they have developed in the past 12 months and said the Welsh economy can be led by higher education innovation.

The statement said: “Wales’ development needs to be driven by real innovation. Such innovation will come from the depth and breadth of knowledge that our universities represent.

“The St David’s Day declaration has already seen us collaborate in a number of key areas including sustainable development, primary healthcare services and social recovery policies. We know that, collectively, our staff and students can offer real help to business, the public sector and to individuals. Our priority remains to use our combined strength in research and innovation to help Wales strengthen after the recession and, beyond that, to create a vibrant knowledge-led society and economy that puts Wales ahead of the game.”

The five vice-chancellors pledged to “continue to work together” to identify additional areas where collective strength is more beneficial. Some of the key areas identified by the group for the next 12 months include: helping develop solutions to business and individual needs which work and can take effect quickly; working with business, the voluntary sector and government to determine what the real priorities for Wales should be; to continue with capital investment programmes, securing construction jobs and supporting Welsh business by local sourcing of suppliers wherever possible; and, to further collaborate on projects aimed at working with international business and education partners.

Examples of how the universities are collaborating

The Wales Institute for Social and Economic Research Data and Methods (Wiserd) which is jointly funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales and the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

It brings together expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methods and methodologies at the five Welsh universities. In Wiserd, Wales has a centre of social science research excellence to support the Government in tackling economic and social issues in Wales through the collection of data using the most advanced research methodologies and internationally renowned researchers.

The Wales Institute of Mathematical and Computational Sciences (WIMCS). It forges together individuals and groups in mathematical and computational sciences across the universities to provide the critical mass of high quality researchers who will achieve international recognition for mathematical research excellence.

The universities say the institute will help enhance the standing of mathematics and computation in Wales, to foster links with industry, commerce and business, to generate substantial research funding and to provide a forum for education and public awareness of the mathematical sciences.

The Low Carbon Research Institute (LCRI). The LCRI was established to bring the range of energy research across the five universities to bear on the environmental challenges facing Wales and the world.

The LCRI aims to support the whole energy sector, UK and globally, in developing low carbon generation, storage, distribution and end use technologies. It will develop capacity and facilities around the existing areas of low carbon and energy expertise in Wales while expanding research activities into other energy-related areas.

The Research Institute of Visual Computing (RIVIC) is a collaborative amalgamation of research programmes between the computer science departments in Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff and Swansea Universities. The centre aims to enrich and strengthen the pool of core academic scientists in visual computing in Wales by bringing in high quality research scientists who have a track record of working at the frontier of science and technology, and operating at an international level.

A £1.2m project, involving the five St David’s Day Group partners and Glyndr University, has extended the provision of careers advice to new graduates on accessing the difficult jobs market place.The project runs until the end of 2010 and extends the provision of careers advice to some 3,000 graduates. It is hoped that the project will up to 1,000 unemployed graduates to access vital training from the partner universities under an Individual Learning Voucher scheme.

More Details: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/business-in-wales/business-news/2010/03/02/universities-renew-collaboration-pact-to-help-wales-thrive-91466-25939513/