Yaffle: A Matchmaking Tool for Engagement

Outline

• What is Yaffle?

• The Harris Centre @ MUN

• Yaffle within the Harris Centre mandate

• Building Yaffle

• Running Yaffle

• The future of Yaffle

What in the world is a Yaffle?

• There are lots of databases and online tools

• To our knowledge, nowhere has a university

committed to link its research and expertise

in such an accessible way

• Nowhere is there a vehicle for

citizens, communities and organizations to

submit ideas for new research or propose

ways to collaborate

A „marketplace‟ for knowledge

Yaffle within the Harris Centre

Building Yaffle

A partnership from day 1

• The Harris Centre developed Yaffle through a collaborative process with the support of the Office of Research, Marketing & Communications, Computing & Communications and the QEII Library

• A project steering committee: NL Regional Economic Development Association, Municipalities N&L, Federal and Provincial governments

• A project technical advisory committee

• Project staff

Funding Partnerships

• Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Development Agreement

• System Development

• Regional Workshops (14): With the Regional Economic

Development Boards (additional support from the

Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development)• Memorial University

• VP (Research) Office• School of Graduate Studies

• SSHRC KIS Program• College of the North Atlantic• Rural Secretariat; 9 Regional Councils• Over 50 Graduate Students• Knowledge Transfer Sessions

Lessons from Development Process

• Executive Support

• Integration into existing systems and processes while shifting the university culture

• Faculty buy-in• “Something else to update”

• Graduate student lay summary collection across different faculties

• Regional Workshops (funded by LMDA)• Assisted in lay summary and new opportunity collection

Solutions

• Projects administered through Office of Research included in Yaffle

• Tri-council proposals already require lay summaries

• Marketing to faculty – finding ways to impart the value of promotion through Yaffle• Find research collaborations• Attract graduate student research• Demonstrate KMb for grant opportunities

• Track and report output for P&T

Running Yaffle

Current Memorial Operations

• 3 person operational staff

• Technical & developmental support from Memorial’s institutional IT department

• MUN Champion Steering Committee in place

• VP Research support for Yaffle operations

• Yaffle supports the work of the KMb team

Yaffle Today

• Over 75,000 searches since public launch (Feb. 2009)• Accessed from 177 countries over 6 continents• Average of 100 users per day

• Graduate Students using Yaffle for thesis topics

• MITACS Identification of Internships

• Government, Community and Media constant users

• 2010 – 18 new brokered projects

• Formalized communications w/ Office of Research

and School of Graduate Studies to automatically

communicate research awards

Lay Summary

Submitted by

User

Lay Summary

Submitted to

Review Queue

Lay Summary

Reviewed by

Yaffle Staff

Revision/Approval Process (if required)

Lay Summary Approved and

Added to Active Database

Some of our stories – Part I

• Healthcare in Labrador

• Provincial government wants to better understand

why people in Labrador are not accessing quality

healthcare in their communities

• They submitted an Opportunity in Yaffle

• A MUN researcher found the Opportunity and

contacted the sponsoring government

department

• A project is now underway to explore these issues

Some of our stories – Part II

• Energy Model for Southern Labrador

• Southeastern Aurora Development Corporation

wants to explore possible solutions to the limited

energy reserves problem in Southern Labrador

• A possible researcher emerged through a Yaffle

connection

• The Harris Centre is now facilitating a possible

longer term connection related to this project

Some of our stories – Part III

• Biochemistry – Dr. Sue Ghazala

• Uses Yaffle to find prospective graduate students

• Placed 2 graduate International graduate students

• Is contacted at least twice a week from prospective

students

• Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

• Uses Yaffle to find researchers

• Pending projects in bio-fuels and water-quality with

Ms. Kelly Hawbolt in Engineering

• Funded project with Dr. Sue Ghazala in Biochemistry

The Future of Yaffle

Yaffle 2.0

• Running for 2 years

• Revisiting initial requirements

• Choose changes and enhancements

• Expansion exploration – Gardiner Centre

Solutions Report

• Pilot update – intention to partner to share

Yaffle

Discussion