• In order to analyze the Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs) that affect thousands of people as a result of long working days using unsuitable furniture, national and international experts gathered together at the “Pensamiento Complejo, Ergonomía de Concepción y Creatividad” conference that was held at Universidad de Santiago.

​

National and international experts gathered together at the “Pensamiento Complejo, Ergonomía de Concepción y Creatividad” conference held at Universidad de Santiago. Its purpose was to analyze the Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs) that affect many people as a result of long working days using unsuitable furniture.

The activity was organized by the Industrial Design Technology program and the National Chair in Ergonomics of the Department of Industrial Engineering of Universidad de Santiago.

Ergonomics

Thousands of people work every day in poorly furnished physical spaces that are not always the best in relation to the number of working hours. Most of the time, they are using computers.

In the activity, the relation between furniture and physical postures was analyzed. Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs)- which involve muscle and bone problems- were the focus of the conference and the experts showed the contribution of ergonomics to designing suitable environments for people.

Poor postures while sitting on a chair, the constant contact with some tools, the effort to lift weight or repeated actions (like typing on the computer) can cause these disorders.

María José Araya, architect, ergonomist and professor at the Department of Management Technologies, explained that this is a very important matter, as “long working hours demand the use of ‘neuro-sensory motor’ energy and usually some tolerance thresholds are crossed for the lack of spaces for resting and for leisure and recuperation activities, causing CTDs, with different levels of severity.”

With this activity, “we would like to strengthen international networks with other higher education centers, like Elisava, to address disability and socio-labor inclusion issues from the “Design for all” concept in the National Chair in Ergonomics of the Department of Industrial Engineering of Universidad de Santiago.

Lecturers

In the activity, Giselle Golcovic, who is a graphic designer of Universidad de Chile and has a Master’s degree in Education from Universidad UCINF, gave the presentation “Pensamiento Complejo y Creatividad en Leonardo da Vinci”.

The architect Antonio Bustamante, ergonomist and professor at the Barcelona School of Design and Engineering (Elisava, in Spanish), the first school of design founded in Spain, presented “El hombre de Vitruvio, el de Leonardo y el de Castaño”. In his conclusions, he referred to the importance of understanding users in movement, a viewpoint that differs from conventional anthropometry, which approaches humans as static beings.

José Miguel Araya, industrial civil engineer, ergonomist and professor at Universidad de Santiago analyzed the works presented from an ergonomics point of view 

It is important to understand ergonomics as a key element at designing office and home furniture in order to help people to prevent posture-related diseases

Professor María José Araya said that this type of activity gives students at programs like Industrial Engineering, Design and Architecture the possibility of learning about these matters before they leave the university.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• Dr. Kerryn McCluskey, from the University of Queensland, said that besides quickly connecting students to teaching practice, practicum since first year of program helps students to determine on their vocation.

During the International Seminar “Evaluation of Professional Practice in Early Teacher Training: An Overview form the Australian Model”, Dr. Kerryn McCluskey, the Director of the Secondary Program in the School of Education at the University of Queensland, Australia, explained the teacher professional training program design developed by that University. In this program, through implementing early practicums, education students get in contact with the class since first semester.

“Until pre-service teachers go to schools, they do not know if this is what they really want or the way of connecting what they do on campus with real life,” says Dr. McCluskey. She added that, in some cases, it takes years before students understand and connect the theoretical knowledge given by the university with teaching practice in the classroom.

For this purpose, the program that she directs organizes teaching practicums since first semester, for ten days, where students attend classes as observers. Then, as they move forward in their training, they have more practice periods and also more interaction with learners in terms of academic support, which can be measured according to the corresponding abilities and competences.

According to the expert, the difficulties posed by the model lie in the disposition shown by guiding teachers and supervisors who accompany the student during this process in schools and at the university, as the model demands personalized attention.

While visiting Universidad de Santiago, Dr. Kerryn McCluskey emphasized that there are not perfect models, but she trusts that after exchanging experiences, education students in Chile may have access to teaching practicums a little earlier.

This international seminar was organized by the Department of Education of the Faculty of Humanities and for his Director, Dr. Daniel Ríos, the experience shared by the Australian expert was very positive.

“It was a good opportunity to share information about this significant issue, not only for the Department or the University, but for all the country, as it concerns teacher training,” the director said. He added that practicums are still the big connection between theory and practice, so it is essential to think about ways of improving them and strengthening them. He said it is an essential issue as right now “there is a discussion in the University about early teacher training.”

Dr. Ríos emphasized the collaborative view provided by this type of activities to open a broad reflection regarding professional practices during early teacher training. For this reason, representatives from other universities and from schools that have admitted our teaching practicing students were invited to the seminar. “We are very pleased because this has helped us to reflect on this issue, exchange ideas and experiences and continue along the line of learning communities,” he concluded.
 

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• On Saturday 11th, more than 600 youngsters participated in the board game convention that opened the fifth version of the Book Route organized by the Library System of Universidad de Santiago. This year the activity is devoted to Fantastic Literature, which is related to popular role-playing games
• According to Ximena Sobarzo, Director of the Library System, SiB, “There is a direct relation among movies, literature and role-playing games, which are so widespread among youngsters. Therefore, focusing on this topic is a good way of promoting reading in our community, as this is our main challenge.” 
• The activity program includes conferences, film screenings, reading guidance and role-playing games and it will last until April 23rd, when the World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated.
• As part of its outreach activities, the SiB has also organized a tribute to the Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano, who died on April 13th.

​

Ximena Sobarzo, Director of the Library System of Universidad de Santiago (SiB U. de Santiago), described the TerraCon board game convention as “a complete success”. The TerraCon was held on April 11th to open the Book Route 2015 of our University.

This opening convention drew more than 600 attendees- youngsters mostly – who visited the Central Library of Universidad de Santiago to participate in role-playing game tournaments, trade collectible cards and see striking miniature figure exhibitions.

In its fifth version, the traditional Book Route organized by the SiB U. de Santiago has a varied schedule of activities focused on Fantastic Literature that includes film screenings, role-playing game tournaments, conferences and others related to this genre.

The Book Route cultural schedule will continue until April 23rd, when the World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated, and it offers other free-of charge events, like the lecture “La fantasía olvidada: clásicos olvidados de literatura infantil de fantasía”, given by Paula Rivera, BA in Hispanic Letters, on April 15th, at 16:00, at the Central Library auditorium.

Likewise, on April 17th, at 16:00, the translator Danilo Jarlaz will give the lecture “La construcción del mundo fantástico a partir de lo ordinario” at the same auditorium

The Book Route involves both scheduled visits to different places in the campus and the promotion of library circulation services. It is being held between April 13th and 23rd, from 10:30 to 14:00.

Classic films and fantastic film premieres are being screened at the Central Library multimedia room, since April 14th to April 22nd, from 10:00 to 16:00.

On April 23rd, from 12:00 to 17:00, at the plaza beside the Central Library, a closure activity called “Taberna Medieval” (Medieval Tavern) has been scheduled. The Chilean Tolkien Society, a group that has specially been invited for the occasion, will be in charge of this activity and will provide music, dance performances, food and medieval decorations. 

This closure activity will also include discussion boards on Fantastic Literature and will have the presence of fencing, archery, and dance and Viking music groups of Universidad de Santiago.

Besides, along with the activities scheduled, “Don Cándido”, the traditional character that symbolizes the Book Route, will ride his bike all over the campus, giving books to students and bringing the library closer to the University community.

Promoting reading in the community 

Ximena Sobarzo, Director of the Library System of Universidad de Santiago, showed herself very pleased for the beginning of the activity and she said that the main goal of the Book Route continued to be promoting the interest in reading in our University community and the community around us, through diverting and creative activities

“Every year, in our Book Route we try to approach new aspects related to how literature goes across different interests and different personalities. We want to show that literature is on the movies, TV, comics, music and others. That is our challenge,” she says.

Regarding Fantastic Literature, on which the activity is focused this year, Ximena Sobarzo says: “There is a direct relation among movies, literature and role-playing games, which are so widespread among youngsters. Therefore, focusing on this topic is a good way of promoting reading in our community, as this is our main challenge.” 

 

For more information, click on https://rutadellibro2015.wordpress.com/

• Universidad de Santiago will be part of the conference that will gather international renowned experts from NGOs, governments, academic institutions and business organizations. The main goal of the meeting is to promote the exchange of ideas and experiences that could become effective solutions to different issues which are relevant to Chile and the world.

More than a hundred participants- business owners, investors, researchers and different authorities- will meet on October 26^th, 27^th and 28^th at the Historical Building of Universitat de Barcelona, Spain, for the 10^th version of the Encuentros Conference. The annual meeting of this network gathers students, researchers and entrepreneurs from Chile or related to Chile, for scientific and professional collaboration.

During three days, the participants will meet with international renowned experts from NGOs, governments, academic institutions and business organizations to discuss different issues which are relevant to Chile. The core idea of this year is “Knowledge for social equity,” one of the main challenges in Chile and the world nowadays.

The main goal of the Encuentros Barcelona 2016 Conference is to promote the exchange of ideas and experiences that could become new projects and effective solutions to the social challenges shared by Chile, Catalonia, Spain and Europe in general. During the meeting, the participants will cover issues like education, sustainability, agriculture, economy, women and science, infrastructure and health.

The Encuentros network started in 2006, in Dresde, Germany. It was organized by a group of Chilean doctoral students. Up to now, the meeting has been held in Milan, Gottingen, Cambridge, Berkeley, Paris, Boston, Santiago and Rotterdam.

This is the first time that Universidad de Santiago will participate in the Encuentros Conference and it has organized a session called “The challenges of the new social market economy,” in which the participants will analyze and evaluate the economic policies implemented in Chile in the past 25 years, particularly those which have affected fundamental rights like education and health.

Dr Gabriel Palma, professor at the Faculty of Administration and Economics of Universidad de Santiago and professor at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Cambridge will be one of the speakers, and Jorge Friedman, the dean of the Faculty of Administration and Economics will be in charge of moderating the session.

Participants

The following experts will participate in the conference: Ei-ichi Negishi, chemist, recipient of the Chemistry Nobel Prize (2010); Gino Casassa, glaciologist, member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that was awarded the Peace Nobel Prize in 2007; Alain Touraine, sociologist. recipient of the Prince of Asturias Award (2010) and founder of the Centro de Análisis y de Intervención Sociológicos(CADIS); Cecilia Hidalgo, recipient of the Chilean National Science Award (2006), and Cristóbal Cobo, specialist in educational technologies and Director of the CEIBAL Foundation Study Center. Other lecturers will be Adriana Delpiano, Chilean Minister of Education; Claudia Serrano, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Chile at the OECD, and Christian Nicolai, Executive Director of CONICYT Chile.

Universidad de Santiago will provide scholarships to students who send their proposals. Those who are selected will have the possibility of presenting their works in Barcelona.

Links:

http://redencuentros.org/encuentros-barcelona-2016/

http://www.ub.edu/web/ub/es/menu_eines/noticies/2016/07/001.html

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• During the 3rd Latin-American Conference on Higher Education Withdrawal held in Mexico, a team of professionals from Universidad de Santiago led by Manuel Arrieta, Vice-President of Student Support Services, shared about the different support programs promoted by the University, with great interest from peer institutions of the continent.

On November 13th, 14th and 15th the 3rd Latin-American Conference on Higher Education Withdrawal (III Clabes) was held in Mexico City, where Manuel Arrieta, Vice-President of Student Support Services, together with other six professionals from Universidad de Santiago presented the different initiatives developed by Universidad de Santiago in order to support and promote students’ permanence.
 
The five topics presented by our University in this international meeting called the attention of the foreign universities represented on that occasion.
 
One of the topics presented was related to the experience and positive results of the Program for Inclusive Access, Equity and Permanence (Paiep, in Spanish) of Universidad de Santiago. This presentation was given by Rafael Miranda, Coordinator of the Subprogram “Developing Your Talents” (“Desarrollando Tus Talentos”).
 
Also, Beatriz Painepán, a professional of the University’s Health Promotion Department gave the presentation “Academic Integration of Engineering First-Year Students with the support of a course on study methods.”
 
The Vice-President of Student Support Services, Manuel Arrieta, expressed his satisfaction before the University’s presentations given at the Latin-American Conference and he stressed the significant role of Universidad de Santiago in promoting students’ permanence.
 
“Our representatives had an excellent participation in the meeting and they were able to catch the interest of other institutions’ representatives,” he said.
 
“In comparison with other higher education institutions, we were able to see that our University is very well positioned regarding matters like permanence promotion. Now, the challenge that we face is to put these initiatives together under a criterion of systematic team work,” he added.
 
According to Manuel Arrieta, it is also worth to mention the fact that Universidad de Santiago is the only institution that this year, in the context of the International Conference, conducted a survey of 375 former students who dropped out their studies for different reasons, in order to find what these reasons were and create then mechanisms to prevent this situation.
 
Teaching Actions to Promote Students’ Permanence
 
Alicia Pérez, Teaching Quality and Management Coordinator of the Teaching Innovation Unit (UNIE, in Spanish), participated in the meeting in Mexico and shared her reflection “on university teachers’ practices as mechanisms to reduce students’ dropout rates.”
 
She said that her presentation caught the audience’s attention “because none of the other presentations addressed the students’ dropout from the teaching- practice point of view.”
 
Most of the speakers approached students’ drop out from the point of view of leveling or tutorial courses; however, if we consider that students’ dropout has multiple causes, we see teaching practice as one of them,” she added.
 
“If teachers are not able to deal with a varied student audience using motivating strategies to achieve a participative learning, students’ dropout will continue,” Alicia Pérez concluded.
 
Alfa-GUIA Project
 
The 3rd Latin-American Conference on Higher Education Withdrawal is an international activity organized by the Alfa-GUIA (Integral University Management of Dropout) project, co-funded by the European Union, which gathers together higher education institutions from 16 countries (12 from Latin-America and 4 from Europe), among which Universidad de Talca and Universidad de Santiago are the Chilean representatives.
 
“Our University has promoted this initiative from the beginning (2011), and due to the fact that the project concludes next year and there is still much work to do, we would like to continue with it, although this time we will not be co-funded by the European Union,” Vice-President Arrieta said.
 
The 4th Conference has been scheduled for next year in Medellín, Colombia. Meanwhile, the work published on the program web page http://www.alfaguia.org will be continued.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• With a marathon reading of Don Quixote, a masterpiece in the canon of world literature, Universidad the Santiago will take part in the World Book and Copyright day celebration. On this date, the death of Miguel de Cervantes, the author of this brilliant creation, is commemorated every year.

• On April 23^rd at noon, and for the third consecutive year, a 24-hour collective reading of this notable piece will begin. Many renowned public figures, like writers Jorge Edwards and Antonio Skármeta, will participate in this cultural activity that will be broadcasted on U. de Santiago radio station (94.5 FM and 1240 AM and www.radiousach.cl).

• Gabriela Martínez, director of the Department of Communications of the University, invited all the University community to join this homage activity, because she thinks that nobody should be left out of this real “cultural crusade.”

Today, on the World Book and Copyright day, the marathon reading of Don Quixote will be started at the Centro Cultural de España-CCE (Spain Cultural Centre). For the third consecutive year, this cultural activity will pay homage to Cervantes’ masterpiece and promote reading in our country.

Starting at noon and for 24 hours, different cultural, artistic and social personalities, together with people of different ages, interests, professions, groups and activities, will meet at a real “cultural crusade” organized by the CCE and Universidad de Santiago.

To open the activity, the masterpiece will be read aloud by Jorge Edwards, writer and recipient of the Cervantes Award, 1999; Carlos Robles, the Ambassador of Spain in Chile; Luis Larraín, President of Fundación Iguales; Alejandra Wood, Director of GAM cultural centre, and Juan Manuel Zolezzi, President of Universidad de Santiago de Chile.

The actresses Carolina Paulsen, Javiera Acevedo and Carmen Barros and the national Deputy Director of Culture, Lilia Concha, were also invited to read during the activity that will be closed on Friday 24^th at noon (at completing 24 hours of this marathon reading) by Antonio Skármeta, recipient of the National Award for Literature and by Carla Guelfenbein, recipient of the Alfaguara Award, 2015.

All the details on this cultural crusade will be live broadcasted from the CCE by Radio U. de Santiago (94.5 FM and 1240 AM and www.radiousach.cl). During these two days, the radio station programming will be focused on the World Book Day and the reading of Don Quixote, the most important piece of Spanish literature and one of the masterpieces of world literature.

“Nobody should be left out”

The reading of this literature classic for a non-stop 24-hour period is not an easy challenge. Therefore, the organizing committee issued a call to everyone interested in taking part of this cultural event to come on the 23^rd and 24^th to the CCE. This Centre is located on Avenida Providencia #927, Salvador Metro Station.

On this point, Gabriela Martínez, director of the Department of Communications and the Radio Station of Universidad de Santiago, said that nobody should be left out of this activity.

With regards to the radio broadcasting, Director Martínez said: “The most difficult thing is to motivate night owls to come to the CCE to participate in this cultural celebration, so we will have attractive spaces available where well- known and less- known people will be moving around.” 

“The idea is that people and the audience feel as protagonists and think that Radio U. de Santiago is “their” radio station. This year, more Chileans abroad and people in different regions and places far from Santiago will be contacted,” she said.

For further information on the Don Quixote Marathon Reading, go to the web page http://www.quijote24h.cl.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

•    The 11^th Chilean Conference on Psychology was organized by the Network of Schools of Psychology of the Consortium of State Universities of Chile and it was held at Universidad de Santiago de Chile.

​

For the second time the 11^th Chilean Conference on Psychology of the Consortium of State Universities (Cuech, in Spanish) was organized by Universidad de Santiago. On this occasion, the core topic of the conference was “Ethics and diversity in transformation times.” Dr Mario Morales Navarro, Head of the School of Psychology of Universidad de Santiago and president of the organizing committee, analyzed the conclusions of the meeting and the challenges that they will face in the future.

“We issued a document that expresses our agreement about the minimal training requirements for Psychology students who graduate from State universities, regarding the skills, specific competences, attitudes and values that should be included in each curriculum. This is a very important achievement,” he said.

Besides acknowledging their commitment to continue working on specific areas of this discipline - like diversity, equity, social climate, welfare, sexual offences and work-related stress- Dr Morales highlighted the essential factors for the proper functioning of the Network, which should have a more important role in the country to generate different actions with real impact and where psychologists can actively participate in the development of public policies.

He anticipated that the heads of the different schools of Psychology will meet again in Universidad de Santiago on January 06^th, 2017, to develop a strategic work plan. “Although each university has its own international network, as a Cuech network, it is important for us to build links with institutions in Latin America, USA and Europe,” he said. He also confirmed that the next Conference will be held at Universidad de La Serena.

850 people attended the Conference, including academics and students, both from Chile and abroad, who met for three days in different places of our campus. The activities involved 120 presentations, 22 symposia, 10 lectures and 40 scientific poster presentations related to different areas of psychology.

Burnout and quality of life at work

Among the international lecturers invited to the Conference, the American psychologist Dr Christina Maslach, professor at the Department of Psychology and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education at the University of California Berkeley, gave a presentation called “Understanding burnout: Current issues.”

Dr Maslach is one of the most renowned experts in job burnout and she is also the author of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), the most widely used research measure in the burnout field.

For his part, the prominent Spanish researcher, Dr Pedro Gil-Monte, professor of Psychology at the Universitat de València and head of Unipsico at the same university, gave the lecture “Psicología de la Salud Ocupacional: acciones para promover la salud mental en el trabajo.”

“This area of Psychology should focus on quality of life at work; on intervention actions, like promotion, prevention and treatment; and it should affect organizations, individuals, work and the work process,” he explained. He said that it is necessary to develop basic research, descriptive studies to show evidence and develop evaluation instruments to measure work-related stress.

Opening ceremony

During the Conference opening ceremony, Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi invited the audience to promote interuniversity research to meet the needs of the country. “This Conference is a yearly touchstone not only for people related to the field of Psychology, but also for many professionals and academics in a broader area of Social Sciences,” referring to the integration of related disciplines like Communications, Health and Sociology.

Marco Barraza Gómez, social and clinical psychologist form Universidad de Santiago and Minister of Social Development, was specially invited to give the opening speech.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• With a marathon reading of Don Quixote, a masterpiece in the canon of world literature, Universidad the Santiago will take part in the World Book and Copyright day celebration. On this date, the death of Miguel de Cervantes, the author of this brilliant creation, is commemorated every year.

• On April 23^rd at noon, and for the third consecutive year, a 24-hour collective reading of this notable piece will begin. Many renowned public figures, like writers Jorge Edwards and Antonio Skármeta, will participate in this cultural activity that will be broadcasted on U. de Santiago radio station (94.5 FM and 1240 AM and www.radiousach.cl).

• Gabriela Martínez, director of the Department of Communications of the University, invited all the University community to join this homage activity, because she thinks that nobody should be left out of this real “cultural crusade.”

Today, on the World Book and Copyright day, the marathon reading of Don Quixote will be started at the Centro Cultural de España-CCE (Spain Cultural Centre). For the third consecutive year, this cultural activity will pay homage to Cervantes’ masterpiece and promote reading in our country.

Starting at noon and for 24 hours, different cultural, artistic and social personalities, together with people of different ages, interests, professions, groups and activities, will meet at a real “cultural crusade” organized by the CCE and Universidad de Santiago.

To open the activity, the masterpiece will be read aloud by Jorge Edwards, writer and recipient of the Cervantes Award, 1999; Carlos Robles, the Ambassador of Spain in Chile; Luis Larraín, President of Fundación Iguales; Alejandra Wood, Director of GAM cultural centre, and Juan Manuel Zolezzi, President of Universidad de Santiago de Chile.

The actresses Carolina Paulsen, Javiera Acevedo and Carmen Barros and the national Deputy Director of Culture, Lilia Concha, were also invited to read during the activity that will be closed on Friday 24^th at noon (at completing 24 hours of this marathon reading) by Antonio Skármeta, recipient of the National Award for Literature and by Carla Guelfenbein, recipient of the Alfaguara Award, 2015.

All the details on this cultural crusade will be live broadcasted from the CCE by Radio U. de Santiago (94.5 FM and 1240 AM and www.radiousach.cl). During these two days, the radio station programming will be focused on the World Book Day and the reading of Don Quixote, the most important piece of Spanish literature and one of the masterpieces of world literature.

“Nobody should be left out”

The reading of this literature classic for a non-stop 24-hour period is not an easy challenge. Therefore, the organizing committee issued a call to everyone interested in taking part of this cultural event to come on the 23^rd and 24^th to the CCE. This Centre is located on Avenida Providencia #927, Salvador Metro Station.

On this point, Gabriela Martínez, director of the Department of Communications and the Radio Station of Universidad de Santiago, said that nobody should be left out of this activity.

With regards to the radio broadcasting, Director Martínez said: “The most difficult thing is to motivate night owls to come to the CCE to participate in this cultural celebration, so we will have attractive spaces available where well- known and less- known people will be moving around.” 

“The idea is that people and the audience feel as protagonists and think that Radio U. de Santiago is “their” radio station. This year, more Chileans abroad and people in different regions and places far from Santiago will be contacted,” she said.

For further information on the Don Quixote Marathon Reading, go to the web page http://www.quijote24h.cl.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

•    The 11^th Chilean Conference on Psychology was organized by the Network of Schools of Psychology of the Consortium of State Universities of Chile and it was held at Universidad de Santiago de Chile.

​

For the second time the 11^th Chilean Conference on Psychology of the Consortium of State Universities (Cuech, in Spanish) was organized by Universidad de Santiago. On this occasion, the core topic of the conference was “Ethics and diversity in transformation times.” Dr Mario Morales Navarro, Head of the School of Psychology of Universidad de Santiago and president of the organizing committee, analyzed the conclusions of the meeting and the challenges that they will face in the future.

“We issued a document that expresses our agreement about the minimal training requirements for Psychology students who graduate from State universities, regarding the skills, specific competences, attitudes and values that should be included in each curriculum. This is a very important achievement,” he said.

Besides acknowledging their commitment to continue working on specific areas of this discipline - like diversity, equity, social climate, welfare, sexual offences and work-related stress- Dr Morales highlighted the essential factors for the proper functioning of the Network, which should have a more important role in the country to generate different actions with real impact and where psychologists can actively participate in the development of public policies.

He anticipated that the heads of the different schools of Psychology will meet again in Universidad de Santiago on January 06^th, 2017, to develop a strategic work plan. “Although each university has its own international network, as a Cuech network, it is important for us to build links with institutions in Latin America, USA and Europe,” he said. He also confirmed that the next Conference will be held at Universidad de La Serena.

850 people attended the Conference, including academics and students, both from Chile and abroad, who met for three days in different places of our campus. The activities involved 120 presentations, 22 symposia, 10 lectures and 40 scientific poster presentations related to different areas of psychology.

Burnout and quality of life at work

Among the international lecturers invited to the Conference, the American psychologist Dr Christina Maslach, professor at the Department of Psychology and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education at the University of California Berkeley, gave a presentation called “Understanding burnout: Current issues.”

Dr Maslach is one of the most renowned experts in job burnout and she is also the author of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), the most widely used research measure in the burnout field.

For his part, the prominent Spanish researcher, Dr Pedro Gil-Monte, professor of Psychology at the Universitat de València and head of Unipsico at the same university, gave the lecture “Psicología de la Salud Ocupacional: acciones para promover la salud mental en el trabajo.”

“This area of Psychology should focus on quality of life at work; on intervention actions, like promotion, prevention and treatment; and it should affect organizations, individuals, work and the work process,” he explained. He said that it is necessary to develop basic research, descriptive studies to show evidence and develop evaluation instruments to measure work-related stress.

Opening ceremony

During the Conference opening ceremony, Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi invited the audience to promote interuniversity research to meet the needs of the country. “This Conference is a yearly touchstone not only for people related to the field of Psychology, but also for many professionals and academics in a broader area of Social Sciences,” referring to the integration of related disciplines like Communications, Health and Sociology.

Marco Barraza Gómez, social and clinical psychologist form Universidad de Santiago and Minister of Social Development, was specially invited to give the opening speech.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• Between August 30^th and September 04^th, 2015, internationally renowned researchers, and professors and students in the field of microbiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, biocatalysis and biotechnology, will meet at Universidad de Santiago to discuss the importance, developments and potential applications of extremophile microorganisms, which are able to thrive in extreme conditions. The Thermophiles 2015 Meeting is a world conference held every two years. For the first time, it will take place in South America and Universidad de Santiago will host its 13^th version. 

Between August 30^th and September 04^th, 2015, world-class scientists and students of the field of microbiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, biocatalysis and biotechnology will meet at Universidad de Santiago for the 13^th International Thermophiles Meeting 2015, a multidisciplinary forum held every two years to discuss the latest scientific developments, applications and importance of these microorganisms that live in different extreme environments of the world.

The purpose of this conference is to increase the knowledge of scientists and students in this research field and, at the same time, to invite them to explore its importance for biological sciences and industrial biotechnology.

“This is an excellent opportunity not only to expose our scientists and students to world-class science and scientists in this field, but also to propose new approaches and views to contribute to science in our country and Latin America,” Dr Jenny Blamey said. Dr Blamey is a professor at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago and is in charge of the forum organization.

“It is important to mention that Chile is considered one of the six geographic areas with the most diverse extreme environments in the planet; therefore, the scientific matters that will be discussed during this conference are very relevant to the future scientific and technological development in this field in our country,” she added.

Scientists invited

Dr Karl Stetter is one of the scientists who will give a presentation during the activity. He is from Germany, a pioneer in the field of biological sciences and the discoverer of the microorganism Pyroccocus furiosus. The DNA polymerase from Pyroccocus furiosus is currently used for gene amplification and genome elucidation.

Another participant in the forum will be Dr Juergen Wiegel. He is from Germany too and is one of the most renowned microbiologists in the world and recipient of the Bergey’s Award.  

Dr Michael W. Adams, a British professor with many publications on this research field who leads the most important laboratory of structural genomics of extremophile microorganisms, will open the conference.

For further information, go to the meeting official web page: http://www.thermophiles2015.cl

Translated by Marcela Contreras