R.I. hosts 2nd Collaborative Research Symposium

PROVIDENCE – The life sciences and biotechnology are the focus today as the R.I. Science and Technology Council (STAC) hosts its second annual Collaborative Research Symposium.

The 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. session at the R.I. Convention Center, entitled Emerging Biomedical and Life Sciences Research in Rhode Island, aims to paint a detailed picture of local research and development efforts in this fast-expanding sector. The event also was to feature the unveiling by STAC of a new statewide collaborative research Web site.

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Keynote speaker Dr. Barbara Alving, director of the National Center for Research Resources, and other speakers and panelists are expected to discuss how scientists can better leverage shared tools, resources and talent to help foster a collaborative environment.

Such collaboration between institutions and disciplines is central to many federal funding programs today, organizers noted, and “is widely considered to be a successful route for advancing scientific knowledge and moving bench research into commercial application.”

The symposium also includes a poster session, showcasing R&D projects across the state, as well as “presentations by young Rhode Island investigators who will showcase ‘best practice’ projects already underway,” STAC said.

The day-long event – a presentation of STAC’s R.I. Research Alliance, which also runs the statewide Collaborative Research Award Program (READ MORE) – is co-sponsored by the R.I. Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), the R.I. Clinical and Translational Science Award, the R.I. IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) and the R.I. Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE).

The R.I. Science and Technology Advisory Council, or STAC, was created in 2005 to help turn Rhode Island into a regional hub for the life sciences, information technology and other research-based industries. Last year, it established the R.I. Research Alliance. For more information about STAC, the Research Alliance or the 2008 R.I. Collaborative Research Symposium, visit www.stac.ri.gov.