“We believe that this fine new university will do more than almost anything else to shape the future of Britain’s oldest colony, now Canada’s newest province.”
That’s how former premier Joseph Smallwood expressed his enthusiasm about Memorial in October 1961 during celebrations to mark the opening of our “new” Elizabeth Avenue campus.
Fast forward nearly 60 years and Memorial has made – and continues to make – an indelible mark on this province’s history.
From pioneering health-related discoveries to advancing knowledge on important issues such as climate change to supporting innovators across our province, Memorial plays a vital role in building a vibrant and successful future for Newfoundland and Labrador, and beyond.
A closer look
To see first-hand how our university is helping shape this future, you have to look no further than at some of the more than 45 events scheduled for our second annual Research Week, taking place Nov. 12-18.
In fact, consider this your personal invite to get out and take part in some of the activities.
I am delighted to see so many events – organized by members of our university community – taking place on our St. John’s campus, Signal Hill Campus, at the Marine Institute, at Grenfell Campus and at the Labrador Institute.
From a discussion about celebrating Labrador authors to a special conference focused on the role of universities in today’s society, Research Week events will highlight Memorial’s research successes and the supports available to our university community.
It is my hope Research Week will also trigger conversations about how Memorial is helping shape our province’s future.
One of this year’s events that I am really looking forward to is the lunch time screening of the new documentary, The Films of Fogo Island, produced and directed by Dr. Jeff Webb, professor, Department of History, and Derek Norman, Memorial film unit co-ordinator, with HSS Films, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.
The documentary marks the 50th anniversary of the Fogo Process and features original footage with new interviews of the films’ subjects. Everyone is invited to the screening on Tuesday, Nov. 12, beginning at 12 p.m. in room IM101 in the Faculty of Medicine.
Among some of the other varied events is a networking session where faculty will give a brief description of their current or emerging research projects or interests; a night-time discussion focuses on how your body gets what it needs; a session on digital research tools; and an open house in the Faculty of Medicine for the whole family.
The Labrador Institute is hosting a session highlighting community archaeology in Labrador; C-CORE is hosting a lunch and learn focused on the Biomass Satellite Mission: Measuring the World’s Global Carbon Cycle; and the Marine Institute is hosting hour-long talks with its researchers. And, Grenfell Campus is hosting everything from research discussions to special celebrations.
Lunch with VPR
I am also hosting a drop-in brown bag lunch on Nov. 13. If you are on the St. John’s campus on Wednesday, Nov. 13, please bring your lunch and drop by the Earth Sciences lounge, room ER-4065. I would love to see you there.
Later that evening I’m also proud to be presenting the 2019 Canada Ocean Lecture Series during a free public talk at the Johnson GEO Centre beginning at 7 p.m. My lecture will explore how Memorial’s physical location, positioned in one of the richest ocean ecosystems on Earth, inspires our researchers to lead critical marine and ocean-related research. Please come along if you are able to attend. The talk is free and open to the public.
And the list goes on. Take some time to check out the events calendar and try to get to some of this year’s sessions.
I hope you can participate in this year’s activities!
