Boeing and FIRST Scandinavia celebrate opening of the permanent Newton Room in Ourense
Ourense (Galicia), 19 of October 2021 – Boeing and FIRST Scandinavia have celebrated today the opening of the permanent Newton Room in the Spanish province of Ourense, in Galicia. The classroom has been placed at Tecnópole, Galicia’s technology park located 12 km from Ourense city, in San Cibrao das Viñas.
In cooperation with Boeing, the Norwegian non-profit organization FIRST Scandinavia has brought the Newton learning experience to Spain, exactly two years after the innovative concept was first launched in the city of Lugo. This time, a large, permanent learning space has been modified and fully equipped to host students, aged from 14 to 16, for a high-quality learning experience in the field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
The opening ceremony was attended, amongst others, by Boeing and FIRST Scandinavia leaders, local authorities, teachers and students, and by the Economy Vicepresident of the Xunta de Galicia, Francisco Conde.
“We are really proud to have Galicia as the first Spanish region where a permanent Newton Room has been established,” Angela Natale, Boeing Managing Director for Southern Europe commented. “Thanks to our partnership with the Galician regional government, and to the support of FIRST Scandinavia, and after the successful experience two years ago, with the installation of a mobile Newton Room in Lugo, we are confirming our partnership with Galicia and our local partners, leaving a further testament of our strong commitment to Spain and its communities.”
“Because of our strong partnerships, we are establishing the Newton Room as a permanent asset for the community, complementing the educational offering in this region. We are excited about the opportunity to provide students and teachers with new educational programs and methods that will stimulate curiosity, motivation and appetite for STEM learning. We hope industry and governments across Spain will look to Newton Galicia at Tecnópole, and that we can build on this success to establish a network of Newton Rooms throughout the country. Welcoming the first Newton Room in Spain to our international Newton network is a true pleasure,” Managing Director of FIRST Scandinavia, Stian Elstad, said.
The Second Vice-president and Regional Minister of Economy, Business and Innovation, Francisco Conde, on his part, assured that the launch in Tecnópole of the first permanent Newton Room in Spain will awaken in the youngest the interest in activities that will be in great demand in the near future. Thus, he referred to the boom in the aerospace sector, since it was the sector in which more companies were created during the pandemic in Galicia.
“This initiative increases the commitment of this technology park to scientific dissemination, at a time when it is essential to educate in innovation and entrepreneurship to stimulate talent in future generations,” said Conde.
“The Newton Room just opened places Tecnópole at the world leadership in modern education. With that goal in mind, we have built a permanent space where Galician high school students will have the opportunity to live an incredible and breathtaking educational experience. The technological park of Galicia increases its offer in promoting STEM abilities with a special focus on young women. We started more than 15 years ago when we opened our Galiciencia exhibition, that gathers experiments developed by students from all over Spain, or our Tecnópole Rooms where primary and high school students develop its science and technological projects,” Tecnópole Director, Javier Taibo, commented.
The Newton Room at Tecnópole is the first to be permanently established in Spain and is a format that has been hugely successful in Norway, which has over 40 permanent rooms distributed across the country. The Newton Rooms are particularly suited to rural locations and allow students to hone their skills in STEM subjects under the supervision of specialist teachers.
The Galician Government's support for this initiative is part of the autonomous program for the promotion of scientific-technological vocations 'Flying high, adding vocations', in which Boeing collaborates, which in turn is also an industrial and technological partner of the Xunta in the Galician Aerospace Pole with projects such as Traffic Management and Safety for Shared Air Spaces.
Boeing and Galicia
Boeing has been an active partner of Galicia, starting from when, in 2018, the Boeing Research & Technology-Europe, based in Madrid, was awarded the project launched by the Xunta de Galicia under the pre-commercial public purchase formula to address the “Management and Security of traffic for shared airspaces” within the framework of the “Civil UAVs Initiative.” The main objective of this 18-month project, called “SkyWay”, was the development of technological solutions that allow progress in the operational and security challenges involved in the deployment of unmanned systems in shared air spaces. The implementation of this project included a series of key activities in the socio-economic framework for the Galicia Region, including an agreement with the Vigo University, the organization of “Drone Days” for students at the Rozas Airport Research Center, and the establishment of a flight simulator in the Boeing laboratory on the Ourense campus. All this, in addition to the establishment of a Mobile Newton Room in Lugo in 2019.
Boeing in Spain
Boeing has been present in Spain for more than 85 years, serving the needs of commercial airline customers and maintaining a long-standing collaboration with the Spanish aerospace industry. Boeing has also been a longtime supplier of airplanes, helicopters and systems to the Spanish military. Boeing Research & Technology-Europe, which is led from Madrid, produces innovative ideas to meet the needs of Boeing and its customers in areas such as model-based engineering, avionics systems, airspace and autonomous operations efficiency, materials and manufacturing technologies.
The Newton Concept
The Newton concept is developed and administered by the non-profit foundation FIRST Scandinavia in collaboration with teachers, academic institutions and corporations. A Newton Room is a well-equipped, inspiring STEM classroom with focus on education of high quality. The purpose is to provide as many children as possible with good experience and feeling of mastery with science subjects. The education is varied and focuses on practical activities. Over 40 Newton Rooms have been established in Norway, Denmark and Scotland, and through the partnership with Boeing the concept has been introduced internationally.
Partnership with Boeing
Boeing and FIRST Scandinavia have partnered since 2013 on different projects, among them the establishment of the Newton Flight Academy in Bodø, Norway. In June 2018, FIRST Scandinavia was chosen as Boeing’s official STEM partner with an investment of $5 million. The Newton concept is now being presented in nine European countries though mobile solutions and permanent venues.
Parque Tecnolóxico de Galicia (Tecnópole)
Tecnópole promotes knowledge and innovation in business activity. Active collaboration links are maintained with universities, research centers and companies with the aim of promoting i+D+i activities and business development and competitiveness. In the scientific and technological dissemination field, a young innovative talent show called Galiciencia has been organized each year since 2006 to celebrate Science Week. Thanks to this initiative, other activities have also been developed such as T2W and Aulas Tecnópole to teach high schoolers about innovative entrepreneurship skills. Tecnópole also runs summer camps and has a well-established relationship with schools in the region.
Contacts
Boeing
Armida Balla
Directora de Comunicación
+39-342-5291540
FIRST Scandinavia
Alysia Tofflemire
Directora Ejecutiva NewtonRoom gGmbH
+49 (0) 176 640 294 35