Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1490058
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 15 JANUARY 2023 12 COMMERICAL Funding opportunities for Maltese entities to tackle major challenges in research and innovation projects THE Malta Council for Sci- ence and Technology (MCST) today announced the funding opportunities available under the Missions Programme un- der Horizon Europe, which are a unique set of actions that en- tail Research and Innovation projects, policy measures and legislative initiatives, all work- ing together to provide solu- tions with an impactful soci- etal understanding. An information session about Horizon Europe Missions was held today at Esplora in Kalka- ra under the auspices of the Parliamentary Secretariat for Youth, Research and Innova- tion. Launched in September 2021, Missions are a novelty in the funding landscape, aimed at tackling major societal chal- lenges, such as in the sectors of Health, Climate Change, Smart Cities, Oceans, and Soil, sup- porting the EU priorities under the Green Deal, Climate Adap- tation Strategy, European Bau- haus, Europe fit for the Digital Age, Europe's Beating. The Parliamentary Secretary for Youth, Research and Inno- vation, Keith Azzopardi Tanti said that MCST has expanded its portfolio throughout the years, not only advising the government on science and technology policy and manag- ing research and innovation across Malta, but also manag- ing national and EU funding opportunities in Research and Innovation, such as Horizon Europe. Azzopardi Tanti added that "We take pride in seeing a steady increase in Malta's par- ticipation in Horizon Europe with Maltese entities managing to tap into more than 20 mil- lion Euro in funding since the start of the programme in 2021, with a huge opportunity for lo- cal researchers to collaborate with high-profile European and international researchers and entities, improving Malta's research profile." The Chairman of the Malta Council for Science and Tech- nology, Dr Tonio Portughese, also expressed his opinion, say- ing that "These are challenges and opportunities that gener- ate engagement from a scientif- ic perspective but concurrently demand a sense of urgency for the effective implementation and deployment in Society of ambitious, value-added, stra- tegic and beneficial objectives." Mr Julien Guerrier, Director of the Common Policy Centre at the European Commission, also spoke amongst the speak- ers and stated "With EU Mis- sions we will be able to create tangible impacts at European, national, regional and local level on societal challenges important for our citizens: cancer, green transformation. We will harvest the innovation potential of all actors involved, breaking down silos between research and deployment." He concluded by inviting Maltese actors to embrace EU Missions and contribute to the Missions on the ground. For 2023 Mission calls will have a budget of 600 million Euro. They set ambitious goals in finding solutions to some of the greatest challenges we are facing today, within the EU and beyond. Maltese entities may participate in the current and forthcoming open calls and re- ceive funding of up to 100% in order to implement their inno- vative ideas and contribute to the Missions. The Framework Programme Unit within the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) is the National Con- tact Point (NCPs) organisation for Horizon Europe. NCPs can provide you with all the neces- sary guidance to navigate with- in the Horizon Europe actions and more specifically the five Missions. For more information, kindly contact horizon.malta@gov. mt or visit https://mcst.gov.mt/ horizon-europe/ Mr. Riley Snack Attack Art Competition: winner announcement and launch of the public vote THE Mr. Riley Snack At- tack Art Competition official prize-giving ceremony was held on 21.12.2022 at Rim- us Riley Ltd. headquarters in Zejtun. Bernice Micallef, the managing director of Com- muniqué, the creative mar- keting agency behind the competition said of the expe- rience: "I know that I, for one, am really grateful to have had this opportunit y to showcase the high level of artistic tal- ent here in Malta. The judges were really impressed by the standard of the submissions they received. The process of selecting three winners per category (13–16/17+) was cer- tainly a challenge, but after some deliberation, they agreed on the winning entries, all of which combine unique ideas with strong brand images." The entries included a comic strip featuring Mr. Riley's bat- tle to save the potato princess on potato planet (by Stefan Agius, 3rd prize, 17+ catego- ry), an astronaut's view of the wonderful world of Mr. Riley (Jean Claude Debattista, 2nd prize, 13–16 category) and Mr. Riley's voyage into out- er space with a trusty bag of French Fries (Kathleen Flask, 1st prize, 17+ category). In the 13–16 category, the winners and prizes were as follows: 1st prize: a Wacom Intuos medium drawing tablet — Ju- lia Grech Lupi, age 15 2nd prize: a VEEGEEBEE art supply voucher worth €100 — Jean Claude Debattista, age 14 3rd prize: VEEGEEBEE art supply voucher worth €60 — Jayme Hili, age 13 In the 17+ category, the win- ners were as follows: 1st prize: a Wacom One Cre- ative 13" display graphics tab- let — Kathleen Flask, age 17 2nd prize: a Wacom Intuos Pro medium graphics tablet — Naomi Gatt, age 33 3rd prize: a Wacom Intuos M medium graphics tablet — Stefan Agius, 40 years old Mr. Riley received so many great designs that he decided to launch a public vote to give the remaining submissions a chance to win a prize, too. In total, he will be offering six more prizes per category to the artworks with the highest number of public votes. "We encourage all remaining entrants to share their artwork on social media, making sure to tag Mr. Riley in their posts," Bernice explained at the event. "Each artwork has a num- ber next to it on the voting platform, so include that in your post to make it easier for friends and family to vote for your artwork. Remember that you can only submit your vote(s) once, so decide which artwork(s) you want to vote for before submitting your vote." The public voting platform can be accessed here: Category 17+ years: https:// c o n t e s t . a p p . d o / p u b l i c - v o t e - m r - r i l e y - s n a c k - a t t a c k - a r t - competition-17 Category 13 – 16 years: https://contest.app.do/public- v o t e - m r - r i l e y - s n a c k - a t t a c k - art-competition From left to right: Naomi Gatt, Kathleen Flask, Stefan Agius, Mr. Riley, Julia Grech Lupi, Jayme Hili and Jean Claude Debattista