Everything Calmast does is in partnership. We work with local authorities, state agencies, industry and business, NGOs, communities groups and schools. There are lots of great people and groups promoting STEM in the region and there are more that would like to with support. We can achieve more impact by working together and Calmast at WIT offers coordination, training and support to all. 

Ní neart go cur le chéile.

In partnership with Industry, Local Authorities, Community Groups, and Schools, with funding from Science Foundation Ireland. Calmast is developing the most comprehensive STEM eco-system in Ireland across the South East through our Hub and Cluster Model. The first tranche of clusters is being developed in Waterford, Dungarvan, Clonmel, Kilkenny and Wexford. These clusters will enhance the provision of STEM engagement across the region. 
 

For more information about the clusters, please email calmast@wit.ie

Groundwork for ACT Waterford is well underway. Waterford City and County Council have teamed up with Calmast STEM Engagement Centre, Waterford Institute of Technology to promote climate action in a project supported by Creative Ireland under the Creative Climate Action fund. 5 Local communities will each focus on a climate action theme. They will work with creative professionals to explore how individuals and communities can take meaningful action in response to climate change. Communities include Kilmacthomas (Rural Environment/Water), Ballybricken Cultural Quarter (Greening the City), Ballybeg (Energy), Dunmore Rd (Travel) and Waterford’s 18-35 Y.O. Online Community (Consumption and Waste). For more information, visit ACT Waterford.

 

The South East Engineering Festival with IT Carlow and Waterford IT

    

Coordinated by Calmast STEM Engagement Centre, the aim of EngFest is to introduce students to the world of engineering and develop their creative and problem-solving skills. Students will learn about the opportunities in the region for engineers and the opportunities to study engineering. 

For post-primary schools, The Faculty of Engineering at IT Carlow and School of Engineering at Waterford IT is proud to present both online and in-person events, among others: 

- Clinic for Waterford  Leaving Cert Engineering Students (11th Feb, 1st March, 8th March). Booking: pallen@wit.ie
- Women in Engineering Celebrating International Women's day: a careers event for TY  and senior cycle girls, featuring female Engineers from across the South East led by Engineer Dr. Niamh Shaw.
- Engineering as a Career (Mixed)
- Bridge Design Competition
- Sustainable Engineering Team Challenge
- STEM Speed QUIZ. 

For primary schools, this year we are planning a programme designed to develop an Engineering mindset, creativity and problem-solving skills in your pupils, following a hybrid delivery model.

- A week-long drawing competition entitled 'I am an engineer',
- Storytelling & Creative Copters Workshop with libraries and
- Engineering Kits based on electrical and mechanical engineering.
- In-person school visits from Engineers if there is singificant interest from schools and teachers. 

The South East Engineering Festival is a partnership of Waterford IT (WIT) and IT Carlow (ITC) signaling their forthcoming merger and transition to the Technological University for the South East Region and aims to promote Engineering to school pupils. The project is supported by funding from ITC & WIT, Calmast, Engineers Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland. #EngFest22 

To register your school: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/EngFest2022 

For more the details on events: https://engfest.ie/programme-22/ 

You can find us at: https://engfest.ie 

On Saturday 5 February, we kicked off the Wexford Creative Communities project, coordinated by Calmast in partnership with Seashell Brownies, Seashell Guides and Seashell Senior Branch. Working with Irish Girl Guides and local artist Órla Bates, the project began with a marine education talk by Prof. Gillian Wheatly, from the Explorers Education Programme funded by the Marine Institute.
 
The project revolves around the impact environmental waste and plastic pollution has on our marine life. Science and art meet to deliver a powerful message, investigating and using waste materials from the local beaches as a starting point to create depictions of local marine life and materials.

The project is funded and supported by Wexford County Council and Science Foundation Ireland in partnership with Creative Ireland as part of the Creative Communities Programme.
 

Pictured: Wexford Creative Communities Project 2022, Members of the Seashell Guiding District, and Prof Gillian Wheatly. 

STEMreach is a hghly successful STEM initiative developed by Calmast connecting higher education, industry, governmental and non-governmental bodies with primary and post-primary schools. The Centre has developed a range of 6-week STEMreach modules covering creative problem solving, sustainability, engineering, chemistry, physics, healthcare and more. Creativity, teamwork, communication and sustainability are key aspects of STEMreach. 

if you are interested in running a  STEMreach TY programme in your school please email calmast@wit.ie. 

The Kilkenny Education Centre is running an online STEM-related workshop, on Thursday 10 February 2022, 7.00 - 8.00 pm

"Using Freckle to individualize the teaching of Primary School Maths"  

Register here.

 

                       

Waterford Teachers’ Centre is running a series of webinars on Assistive Technology for students who are deaf/ hard of hearing, blind/visually impaired, or physically impaired.

A webinar (for Waterford teachers) is also being delivered by WIT Assistive Technology Outreach Training Programme – looking at free assistive technology features available within MSOffice and Google Suite packages. Information and registration links for these webinars www.wtc.ie

Online webinars and workshops are also being delivered on Climate Action and Sustainability for Primary and Post Primary Schools including a series of workshops on school gardens.

The theme of this year’s Mary Mulvihill award is ‘Water’. The science communication and media competition is open to all third level students in Ireland, with a top prize of €2,000.

Deadline is Friday 29 April 2022. For more info visit www.marymulvihillaward.ie

The regional finals of Scifest 2022 will be held in May in Waterford IT coordinated by Calmast STEM Engagement Centre, with judges from local Industry and Schools of Engineering, Science, and Health Science in WIT. Students and teachers can easily get involved by running a SciFest event in their own schools. 

On 16 February CBS Kilkenny is running their own SciFest competition, with judges joining the in-person event from Calmast, Prochem, and other local industries in Kilkenny.

                            
 

With a heavy heart, we received the news last week that Science Gallery Dublin has now temporarily closed their doors due to ongoing structural difficulties.
 
The Science Gallery was a key pillar of public STEM Engagement in Ireland and we look forward to supporting the centre in their new phase of planning.

                       

By the end of March, the Department of Education is due to publish a new strategy on Education for Sustainable Development. Climate education must be revised to teach students about the climate crisis and empower them to take action instead of the current ‘inadequate’ system, experts say.

Following on from a recent Economic and Social Research Institute publication,  local science and biology teacher Patrick Kirwan in Waterford remarked ‘that education needs to put more focus on the wider picture of the climate crisis and the measures that must be taken to address it.’

Full article: https://www.thejournal.ie/climate-education-strategy-schools-5667296-Jan2022/

 

 

Working in partnership with MSD, Calmast will host a creative problem-solving day as part of their wider Transition Year Programme in February. Students from all across the country will come together to learn about the innovation process, design thinking and entrepreneurship through the lens of climate action and behavioural change. 

          

                   

 

 

Robert Boyle's 395^th birthday took place on 25 January. This summer marks the 10^th  annual Robert Boyle Summer School which will take place in person from 23 – 26 June, focusing on the theme “Science and Colonialism.” Stay tuned to http://www.robertboyle.ie and Robert Boyle social media for more information.