COOPERATION PROJECTS SCHOOL, UNIVERSITY, INDUSTRY

Nothing can beat a client request, which overlaps with the personal interests and dedication of the person responsible for executing the task at hand.

Since some years F. Hoffmann-La Roche has been pursuing a program in Switzerland and the trinational triangle (D, CH, F) to promote and enhance interest for the Life Sciences at the school level, as part of the company’s strategy for sustainable support of health and science literacy topics. Bringing the lab to the schools and conducting experiments in the field of molecular biology in order to get a better grasp on science, are good examples for such activities. Another goal is to carry the research frontier into the classroom to demonstrate how interesting it can be, to participate in research against cancer or other metabolic disorders and to highlight that “the cutting edge of research” is not so unreachably far away - on the contrary, the basics for attaining the necessary knowledge are conveyed right there, at the schools. Of course, science education can be further refined at university, but the foundation for career perspectives in science is laid at school.

Even if one views science knowledge detached from vocational aspects, although an important school task is to prepare for the career stage of life, science literacy is also fundamental for other daily life aspects of pupils and students, for example as participants in the health care system, or as a head of family to give advice on preventative medical care (e.g. vaccinations etc.), or just as a member of society (e.g. casting political votes and assuming personal environmental responsibilities).

In order to be able to adequately address socio-scientific issues, when science meets questions that are relevant for society at large (evaluation of scientific facts, ethical issues etc.), Roche works with the Life Science Learning Center of the University of Zurich and the ETH, for example to jointly offer ideas and material for continuing teacher education.

For NOW, it is a great pleasure to apply our competence for conveying and transforming (science) knowledge to educational or literacy concepts and to participate in creatively generating and shaping materials at this junction between schools, university and a commercial enterprise.

An example for tangibly providing such a forum for Schools, University and Industry is an exhibit area for use at teacher or student conventions for Life Science topics:

Purpose of the backwall of the exhibit:
– Serve as visual attraction
– Pique curiosity, arouse interest for the topic
– Clearly communicate the offering, make it stand out
– Invite engaging in dialogue with the exhibit staff
– The picture language must always provide topical bridging during dialogue
– Inspire take away/take home of information material
– Serve as visual anchor for all exhibit elements
– Highlight the institutions offering all exhibit information (university and company)
– Differentiate and highlight the competencies of the individual partners

Further exhibit elements are:
– Console unit as element for dialogue and display
– Information rack
– Decentral exhibition unit (roll-up)
– Print material

As was intended, utilization of the elements at conventions has lead to dialogue with teachers resulting in Continuing Education Courses for teachers with subsequent pupil/student lessons or classes.

Further agency activities of NOW in this area are:
– Support for employee communication and reporting
– Support to update, modernize and freshly shape educational company materials
– Organizational and creative support for other Sustainability Projects in the areas of science literacy, humanitarian aid and emergency relief establishing a student exchange model (USA/Germany pilot) for specially talented students interested in Life Sciences (Research Exchange Scholars – RES, F. Hoffmann-La Roche).

Peter L. Sebastian, due to special competencies earned, for example as former Head of Public Relations for the Diagnostics Division of F. Hoffmann-la Roche and as biologist by professional training (Master Degree from the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University of Frankfurt), currently with the Life Science Learning Center of the University of Zurich and the ETH, takes particular interest and pleasure in creatively and functionally guiding these tasks, as well as generating and providing the necessary materials in teamwork with the competent agency colleagues at NOW.