On March 16, the presentation of the Science China Corner research projects by students from the St Margaret College Secondary School Verdala in Cospicua was held at the China Cultural Centre in Malta.

The Ambassador of China for Malta, Yu Dunhai, complimented the students for their eagerness to learn about China and the hard work involved in their research. He also commended their teacher and founder of the Science China Corner, Martin Azzopardi, for his strong dedication and perseverance to build a bridge between the people of China and Malta.

“This year marks the 13th anniversary of the founding of the Science China Corner. Throughout these years, you have covered several topics on Chinese culture, including Chinese porcelain, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese poems and Chinese Traditional Medicine. I believe that this is a very meaningful job because it contributes to world peace. It may look far-fetched but from my experience, when two people learn about their mutual different cultures, they tend to have a better understanding of each other. This leads to peace and cooperation instead of war and conflict,” he said.

Azzopardi was very proud of the work the students who attend the Science China Corner have made during the year. He said that by now, this annual presentation at the China Cultural Centre in Malta has become a very significant appointment.

“Very often people ask me why I founded the Science China Corner in my school and I reply ‘Why not?’ China is a huge country with a long history, innovation and discoveries. Even Malta has a long history but I think that we need to learn from other countries. Each year, our students are learning, enjoying their research studies and enhancing their multicultural spirit. Nowadays, we need to be more multicultural, not oriented inwards but having open horizons,” he concluded.

During this event, the students shared their comprehensive research about the history and making of different kinds of Chinese tea sets and their influence on the Western tea culture, the history and making of Chinese silk dolls, the history and making of Chinese paper puppets, the history and different textiles and shapes of Chinese dresses, China’s earthquake-resistant wooden buildings and China’s advancement in the manufacture of sound sensors.

Claudine Muscat, Senior Manager of the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry for Education, who attended this event, highly recognised the efforts of the students and expressed wishes to introduce the Science China Corner project to more of the Maltese public through other means.

The Director of the China Cultural Centre in Malta, Yuan Yuan, was very impressed by the extensive and interesting research that was presented by the students.

“All the presentations were very well-thought and well-organised. I believe that these students are lucky to have such a dedicated teacher who is introducing them to a broader horizon through Chinese culture. In later years, when these students will look back at this time, they will understand the benefits of such education even better,” she said.

She thanked all the students for their sterling work and said that she is already looking forward to their presentation next year.