RITA
Further information about the Northumbria Region's RITA Project. Including what the acronym RITA actually stands for!
RITA: Research Ideas from the Third Age
RITA emerged from collaboration between Newcastle University’s VOICE North initiative and the Regional U3A. VOICE (Valuing Our Intellectual Capital and Experience) works with many agencies including 25 businesses, to encourage research ideas and implement results.
Jim Edwardson, an academic and vice chair of the regional U3A, is passionate about developing a research culture to generate ideas and lobby government on issues which affect us. Research is the basis of change for good. His favourite quote is ‘nothing about us without us!’
RITA began in earnest in 2012. There have been a number of workshops for Research Ambassadors (RAs), volunteers from each U3A who can inform, recruit and harness the ideas and enthusiasm within their U3A. To stimulate participation, a competition invites U3A’s in our region to submit topics for research in any field of science, technology or the arts and humanities. Last year’s winners included an analysis of the contribution of the elderly to society and a mobile phone alert system.
Ponteland U3A has submitted an entry each year. The entries are evaluated by an independent panel and five prizes were awarded this year. The results are a closely guarded secret until the award ceremony at the regional meeting in Gateshead. This year Ponteland received one of the two second prizes of £400 towards our research project. The project will investigate the provision of free, less known services available to our community, how their availability is communicated to potential users and what prevents access or use by individuals. It will be based on our members.
The next step is to recruit a research group who are interested in pursuing this further. We are waiting for guidance from Jim Edwardson, but in the meantime you can find out more on the Regional website by clicking the link in the sidebar at the right of this page and then clicking on the RESEARCH button.
Margaret Chaytor
Research Ambassador
November 2013.