Every year the QMUL Centre for Public Engagement distributes Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) awards to support activities that bring new audiences to the work being done here at the university.
The Centre for Public Engagement was created in 2012 to expand the public engagement work of the university and to further embed it in everything we do. Along with our staff and students we want to engage large and diverse audiences with QMUL research, staff and buildings.
The eight projects funded given large awards from HEIF funds include a festival of world poetry in East London, a display of resting model butterflies made from cutting edge ‘biomimicry’ materials, a programme of activities to school children hands-on experience in QMUL bioengineering labs, an event teaching older adults about bioengineering and medical implants, an interactive concert experience showcasing musical innovations from QMUL and our Centre for Digital Music, science-led turtle conservation projects on the islands of Cape Verde off Western Africa, an exhibition of artistic collaborations between artists and neuroscientists, and a display of new technologies that help people to read.
Speaking about the awards, Prof Peter McOwan, Vice-Principal for Public Engagement, said, “It’s great to be able to fund such a diverse and inventive group of public activities that interest and excite audiences while also creating greater understanding of the kinds of work we do here at the university.
“The Mile End campus of QMUL began life in the 19th Century as a public centre of educational, cultural and social activities for the people of East London and across the whole institution we continue that tradition by making sure that we are an important part of our local community that is accessible to all our neighbours.”
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