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A big thank you to The Children’s Museum Jordan, NAMES 2016 esteemed host, for making NAMES 10th anniversary very remarkable and memorable! The successful conference was hosted under the Patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan and the leadership of Ms. Sawsan Dalaq, Director of The Children’s Museum. Ms. Dalaq was reelected President of NAMES for a second term (2016/2018).
NAMES 2016 Conference solidified the status of the Network on the international arena with 230 delegates representing more than 25 countries. The conference featured two keynote speeches; the first by eminent speaker, Dr. Omar Yaghi, Jordanian-American Chemist and Chair Professor of Chemistry at James and Neeltje Tretter, University of California. Through his personal journey, Dr. Yaghi highlighted the importance of science centers and research centers; he shed light on the necessity of encouraging youth to visit the science center, even virtually through the websites, as it is an essential key to connect people through one common language, which is science and knowledge. Our second keynote speaker was Mr. John Joseph, Director of Focus Education Australia Pty Ltd.. Mr. Joseph inspired the attendees with his speech, which tackled his experience as a hands-on educator.
For the Conference Photos, please click here!
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We are pleased to announce that the 3rd edition, EMME 2017, is scheduled to be hosted by Città della Scienza, Naples, Italy, 10–15 September 2017. In light of the success of the first two editions, the two networks—NAMES and Ecsite—signed a new 4-Year Partnership Agreement during Ecsite 2016 in Graz, Austria.
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Letter from the Reelected President
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Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to convey my very best wishes and sincere thanks to all of you as we wrap up an eventful 2016 and shift our momentum into the next calendar year. The past 12 months have been marked by noteworthy achievements and change. As we reflect on the past year, I believe that we have many reasons to have enormous pride in our accomplishments at NAMES and look forward with enthusiasm to next year.
Just a few outstanding examples: NAMES celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2016; while we took pride in reaching this milestone, we must take a moment to reflect on the hard work and efforts of a handful of people who believed in the Network and made it happen. A brain child of Ms. Hoda Elmikaty, who was then heading the Planetarium Science Center at the Library of Alexandria, the Network remains an outcome of her vision and determination to make the impossible possible. Hoda was joined by the late Mijbil Al Mutawa whom we sadly lost in 2016, but not without leaving his amazing mark, not only on the field of science centers in his country and our region, but as we have witnessed, upon so many people all over the world; may his soul rest in peace.
These two beacons had a soldier doing the hard work in helping elevating the Network; Ms. Maissa Azab whose perfectionism never ceases. She was later joined by Ms. Rehab Elawamry as a full-time NAMES officer and our link with all our members and friends. Both Captain and Officer are still working tirelessly to help do more and make more of an impact as the NAMES Secretariat Office.
Download to read the complete letter.
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To support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), NAMES network actively participated in ISCSMD through activities across the region conducted by seven of our members, which were presented on the ISCSMD official website and made a mark on its worldwide map.
NAMES also participated in the World Science Day for Peace and Development on Thursday, 10 November, in Paris, represented by Eng. Shirin Husseini, Content Development Manager at Al Nayzak for Supportive Education and Scientific Innovation. Different issues were discussed, including the role of science in supporting SDGs and advancing public engagement in the SDGs with emphasis on the challenges and opportunities in serving diverse communities.
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On the occasion of NAMES 10-Year Anniversary, we are pleased to officially introduce NAMES newly revamped website, which reflects our new corporate identity. NAMES New Website features a much more modern, attractive interface, and user-friendly navigation. Our new website has a clean, uncluttered design, improved functionality, and enhanced rich content. The new website is published now, in both English and Arabic, at the same address: www.namesnetwork.org.
We hope you love the new updated look of NAMES Website!
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You go to a restaurant. The setting is superb, the food excellent; but, you are not greeted on entry, or shown to your table, and the waiter knows nothing about the menu. This is what the guest will remember and tell their friends when recounting the experience; we recognize this as bad service. Many of us would have experienced bad service in museums and science centers. The staff could be unclear about their role, have poor knowledge of the content, or be nervous to engage with the visiting public. Akin to the restaurant example, poor staff performance lets down the most impressive of buildings and compelling of exhibitions.
Destinations such as the Etihad Museum in Dubai and Mishkat Interactive Center in Kingdom Saudi Arabia have recognized that the success of any audience experience relies on a dedicated and enthusiastic staff committed to delivering exceptional visitor services and making learning an extraordinary experience. TalentS|KCA have been working in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region for several years to recruit, train, and mentor local teams to deliver engaging and meaningful audience experiences.
In 2011, TalentS|KCA began working with Mishkat Interactive Center, recruiting and training Riyadh residents to work in the new science center. During recruitment, they looked for individuals who had not necessarily worked in informal education before, but who had a spark and the potential to develop within the team and deliver great audience experiences for Mishkat. Since then, Mishkat has continued to go from strength to strength with its impact being recognized nationally and internationally.
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