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Barbadians are being urged to come out and support researchers of the University of the West Indies and secondary school students participating in this year’s Third Biennial Science and Technology (S&T) Symposium and Speak-Off Competition.
The event, which is being hosted by the National Council for Science and Technology (NCST), will take place on March 22 and 23, at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Two Mile Hill, St. Michael, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.
Open to science students aged 15 to 18, the S&T Speak-Off competition is designed to enhance presentation skills and research capability, while encouraging a culture of S&T research among the youth.
Participating students will address a number of topical issues, while researchers will make presentations related to the symposium’s theme: Fostering Innovation through Research In Science & Technology. The Speak-Off competition will run from 9:00 a.m. to noon, on Thursday, March 23.
It is expected that students will engage an audience comprising not only teachers and peers but parents, guardians and the public. Hopeful of increased attendance this year, the NCST is appealing to all to support this event by attending and giving encouragement to students, as well as providing feedback to researchers through the question-and-answer sessions that will follow each presentation.
“We want to see more support for this biennial event and, most importantly, for these young minds who will become the next generation of scientists and researchers. We are therefore calling on families and friends to attend this free event that will make them more aware of the latest developments in S&T and how these will impact their lives,” said Senior Technical Officer of the NCST, Arlene Weekes, who is also the event’s coordinator.
The aim of the biennial symposium is to provide a platform for the promotion of scientific and technological research in national development; and to enable scientists, engineers and technologists to exchange information and share their research findings with the public.
According to the NCST, the presentations will encompass all areas of science and technology, especially those which can be used in the further development and growth of Barbados.