Newsletter of The
Department of public policy pg pg pg
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Head of Department
Edward Warrington
Visit to the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality
Anne Marie Thake pg
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Interview
Robert Micallef talks to Godfrey Baldacchino pg
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Visit to the National Archives &
Banca Giuratale
Commemorating Godfrey pirotta
Article: outreach initiatives
Mario Vassallo
News Page
Public Lectures
POPE: Views ON Economic & political realities paper by maltese sociologists graduation ceremony

Dear Colleagues,
The first term of the academic year is over: examinations will soon be in our thoughts ... and perhaps our prayers!
As I write, Parliament is discussing the Financial Estimates of revenue and expenditure for the year 2010. The Minister of Finance and the Leader of the Opposition have made their speeches. Throughout the early part of December, the
Members of the House will be reviewing the more mundane programmes and items fall ing under the jurisdiction of individual ministers. Public policy-making is rather like that: there are moments of high drama, heated debate, contests to win overpublic opinion ... and long periods of ‘routine’ during which the policy sciences take over where politics leaves off.
While most people are preoccupied with preparing for Christmas, a drama that has far-reaching importance will be playing out in Copenhagen, where the world’s leaders will meet to decide on the global response to the challenges of climate change. Some of us have been anxiously following the shifts in public opinion, in scientific knowledge about climate change, and in the business climate, which will play determining roles in the choices that political leaders make about the future. The on-going debate about climate change interests all of us intimately – especially those of us who are still young and who will have to bear the consequences of the changes for good or for ill.
The debate about climate change and the governance systems that will be erected to confront the challenge offer plenty of opportunities for research, from small-scale case studies of decision-making to full-scale doctoral theses and books. I wonder whether we might make this a unifying theme for our lectures, seminars and dissertations next year?
A theme such as this could place the Department on the leading edge of scholarly re search and policy-making. Here is something for you to think about as you munch mince pies this Christmas!
For all people of good will, Christmas is a festival of hope, rekindling the light in humanity’s darkness. As our busy academic year unfolds, may the Christmas Recess al low each of you to pause for rest, for celebration, and for the renewal of mind and spirit.
With good wishes and blessings,
Edward Warrington

by Professor Godfrey Pirotta
This year the Department has updated its Year One teaching programme for the study-unit Introduction to Public Policy. In addition to lectures this year we are arranging visits to centres where policy is made or deliberated. We are also organizing lectures from invited speakers who are active in a variety of policy areas. Among the places visited were the Curia, the administrative centre of the
Catholic Church of Malta and the National Commission for the Promotion of
Equality.
Among the invited guest speakers we find Ms Claudette Abela Baldacchino, who in addition to being Deputy Mayor of Qrendi, was the rapporteur on two important issues for the EU Committee of the Regions: The Roadmap on Gender Equality and the Report on Discrimination Against Women. Both reports were later en dorsed by the European Parliament.
At the Curia students from group One and Five had an opportunity to hear about the way this institution is administered and of the issues in which it may be involved from time to time. The students were addressed by,among others,
Pro-vicar general Mgr Anton Gouder. Born in Senglea in 1951, Mgr Gouder was ordained priest in 1977. He was vice-parish priest in Senglea and later parish priest at Christ the King parish in Paola. In 1989 he was nominated pastoral secretary and in 2001 he became rector at the seminary. He has been pro-vicar general since January 2007. A specially recorded message by Archbishop Paul
Cremona was also transmitted to the students present at the Curia.

by Anne Marie Thake
A visit to the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality (NCPE)by first year Public Policy was held on on Tuesday 1st of December as part of the course ‘Introduction to Public Policy.
Therese Spiteri from the NCPE delivered a presentation and gave the stu dents the following reports: Implementing Gender Mainstreaming - A Na tional Public Service and Public Sector Initiatives and Good Practices Doc ument (2009) and Gender Responsive Budgeting (2009)- A study on GRB initiatives in Sweden,Switzerland, Italy, UK and France.
Profile of Therese Spiteri B.Com. (Hons.). M.A. Public Policy
In 2005 Ms Spiteri graduated in Public Policy, and in 2008 obtained her
Masters in Public Policy from the University of Malta.
She began her career as an affiliate Marketing Manager with a leading software company operating in Malta. In 2006, she was employed in the public sector attached to the National Commission for the Promotion of
Equality (NCPE), responsible for on gender equality. She initially worked on the projects’ aspect of the Commission, seeking funding opportunities, leading project coordinators to reach the targets and objectives, whilst ensuring compliance with the related funding regulations.
Ms Spiteri’s current position at NCPE is that of Manager, responsible for supporting the Executive Director. For the last six months however, given that the latter position was vacant she has been fulfilling the interim role of ensuring work continuity in line with organisational standards and commitments. Today, NCPE's remit includes gender and family responsibilities in employment, training and goods and services, and race/ ethnicity in goods and services.

The second year Public Policy students visited the National Archives in
Rabat and the Banca Giuratale in Mdina for a research study visit on the
1st of December as part of the module ‘Researching Public Policy’. The students met Mr Charles Farrugia, Head of the Archives Department and were shown around the facilities in both the Rabat and Mdina sites. They were accompanied by Mr Charles Vassallo and Mr Robert Micallef, members of the academic staff at the Department of Public Policy.
The National Archives of Malta aims to preserve the collective memory of the Maltese nation and protect the rights of citizens through ready access to essential evidence. The Banca Giuratale was built in 1730 as a records office and is still used for this purpose. It is an excellent example of
Baroque handiwork.
Members of staff of the Department of Public Policy at a meal in Vittoriosa to celebrate the outgoing Head of Department Professor Godfrey Pirotta

Godfrey Baldacchino is Canada Research Chair in Island Studies and Full Professor in the
Department of Sociology & Anthropology at the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) in Canada. He is also Visiting Professor at the University of Malta and former Director of its
Centre for Labour Studies. As Canada Research Chair in Island Studies at UPEI, Profes sor Baldacchino is advancing a critical, comparative and interdisciplinary agenda which includes: Island Tourism; Patterns of Governance in Sub-National Island Jurisdictions; The
Impact of island-mainland Bridges on Island Communities; and Successful Small Business from Small Islands. Robert Micallef, resident academic at the Department of Public Policy interviewed Professor Baldacchino about his academic work, ongoing projects and his views about the state of affairs in Malta.
Robert Micallef - Earlier this month, you delivered a public lecture at the University on the theme "The Globalisation of Islands: New Geographies for the 21st
Century?" What were your key arguments during the lecture?
Godfrey Baldacchino - My lecture was based on work in progress that is examining the offshoring and inbordering of island spaces in contemporary political economy. Whether offshore finance centres (Bermuda Cayman), prison camps (Guantanamo Bay in Cuba), nature reserves (Galapagos), or strategic military fortresses (Diego Gacia in the Indian
Ocean, Guam in the Pacific), islands afford opportunities for the engineering of distinctly regulated environments.
RM -You recently authored a publication called "The Case for Non
Sovereignity". What do you mean by non-sovereignity?
GB – I mean the conscious and strategic decision by a small, often island, non-independent territory NOT to seek to become independent, even though its metropolitan overseer may be keen to terminate the (usually expensive and possibly embarassing) colonial relationship. Today, the sovereignty of places like Iceland is not necessarily the best defence against such external threats as security or such internal destabilising influences like financial meltdowns.
RM -You must be one of very few individuals in the world to have visited the numerous small and island states across the globe. What would you like to share about that experience?
GB - Well, first of all, not all small island jurisdictions are necessarily warm and welcoming. And many of my colleagues mistake my research trips for lightly camouflaged holidays. But having been born and bred in Malta, and now working since
2003 on another island territrory (the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island) affords a very powerful analytic perspective to island issues, irrespective of the specificities that accompany each case.

RM -You left Malta in 2003 to take up a post at the University of Prince
Edward Island in Canada. To what extent do you still follow developments in Malta?
GB - I am grateful to the University of Malta for having granted me open-ended leave of absence to take up quite a prestigious position as a Canada Research Chair, and in a highly exciting and interdisciplinary area - that of island studies - where the relevance of Malta's experiences remains a vital source of inspiration. I have also mantained a semi-regular presence on University of Malta campus: teaching one or two courses for every year that I have been away; and remaining rather closely involved with the work of the University's Centre of Labour Studies. My research interests in
Malta have also spawned a number of scholarly publications: the latest is a peer-reviewed monograph about trade unionism in Malta for the European Trade Union
Institute.
RM - In your opinion, how has Malta coped with the competitive pressures of being a member state of the European Union?
GB - Unlike most of the countries acceeding to the EU in the 2004 enlargement, Malta (like Cyprus and Slovenia) was already operating within a fairly open and competitive environment. A more serious challenge is to improve and better respect consumer and citizen rights in a country where natural monopolies abound and where service is not always as professional as it should be - from both public and private quarters.
RM - In your view, what are Malta's main challenges and opportunities as a small state with an open economy on the periphery of Europe?
GB - We continue to do fairly well as 'norm entrepreneurs' at both state and household levels. We usually recognise our limitations but are quick to identify and respond to niche opportunities as and when they appear. The development of the electronic gaming industry, as well as that of generic pharmaceutical manufacture, are suitable recent examples of this adroitness. Being such a small jurisdiction, the danger for
Malta remains that of becoming too dependent on one specifici industrial player or investor, who could then start calling the shots. For a time, ST Microelectronics was - and perhaps still is - such a towering giant; one wonders whether Smart City is the next ...
RM - Has the distance changed your understanding and perception of your identity as a Maltese citizen?
GB - I think so. I have grown to better appreciate the salubrious climate (though I hate the sum mer months!), the ease of social interaction and networking, the boisterous and demonstrative nature of our culture: we like pageantry, loud noses and dramatic effects. I remain also all too much aware that our partisan rivalry remains a very serious point of tension. The most distinguishing feature of all, however, is the extensive presence and impact of the
Catholic Church here.

By Mario Thomas Vassallo
In our last newsletter, I shared my thoughts on the Public Relations Plan that was launched in February 2009 to widen and deepen the knowledge of interested stakeholders and civil society on the Department of Public Policy. Apart from the realisation of key action points, including the publication of a full colour brochure and the revamp of an interactive website on the University portal, we also took the initiative to circulate this info material to all our
Diploma, Undergraduate and Masters students, including the FEMA lecturing community.
In addition, we have supplied 350 promotional leaflets to the International and EU Office at the University of Malta so as these can be distributed in a number of Educational Fairs in the coming months. This will surely solidify our international goodwill and will help to attract more foreign students to our courses.
This year’s summer was extremely busy for us at the Department because we initiated a systematic outreach wherein we started communicating with potential employers who might engage a number of our graduates in the future. We have presented them with an information pack comprising the brochure and an accompanying letter from the Head of the
Department. Furthermore, we have also met with a number of recruiting agencies who asked for more information about our academic programmes and successful graduates’ profiles.
Among others, we have communicated with the following employers:
• The Civil Service: We targeted 18 Directors Corporate Affairs in the various Minister ies, together with other Departmental Heads
• The Public Sector: We are in touch with Chairmen and Human Resources Managers of 30 government agencies, regulatory bodies and corporations, for example Enemalta,
MEUSAC, Malta Enterprise, MEPA, Ombudsman, PBS, Freeport, MIMCOL, NSO, etc
• Local Councils: In this sector, we have communicated with 68 mayors representing all the localities in Malta and Gozo. A number of our graduates have established a rewarding career in the sphere of local government.
• Recruiting Agencies: We consider recruitment and consultancy firms as key stakeholders that really influence the domestic and European labour market. We have sent our information packs to not less than 50 public and private recruiting agencies. Feedback was extremely positive and this augurs well for our students and prospective graduates.
Due to the interdisciplinary nature of Public Policy, our graduates are well versed to undertake rewarding careers pertaining to different professions, including policy analysts, research executives, project leaders, human resource managers, journalists, EU funds’ administrators, local councils’ secretaries, heads of ministries and commercial specialists.
Our academic efforts are complimented by very positive feedback that we constantly receive from employers in the public and private sectors, together with Civil Society entities and EU bodies, who have all engaged our graduates over these last thirty years.

The Department of Public Policy, in collaboration with the students, organises a number of public lectures and other social and recreational events throughout the academic year. Three annual memorial lectures are held on campus or at other venues, wherein foreign and local keynote speakers are invited to share their experiences and views on specific issues relating to public policy. The lectures are open to the general public and revolve around the following themes:
• Sir Anthony Mamo Memorial Lecture
Discusses policy issues concerning governance, governing institutions, democracy and statehood
• Dr Anton Tabone Memorial Lecture
Debates policy issues concerning local government, subsidiarity and the roles of civil society and NGOs in policy making
• Josephine Debono Burns and Agatha Barbara Memorial Lecture
Reviews matters relating to gender issues, equality, and women’s emancipation and participation in politics
The Master of Arts in Public Policy is a three-year part-time evening programme. It is specifically designed to meet the needs of Government officials, EU advisors, Fund
Managers and Administrators, Policy Practitioners, Strategy Formulators, Trade
Unions' representatives and NGO leaders
The programme addresses the critical social, economic, environmental and political issues of our time. The curriculum is designed to provide a combination of academic theory, analytical skills, and real world scenarios so that participants become effec tive, creative leaders in public institutions and private enterprise. Special consider ation is given to academic research and writing, as students are provided with many opportunities to enhance their research skills.
The Masters programme requires 90 ECTS credits, including the writing of a policy oriented dissertation (25,000 words).
The next intake is expected to take place next academic year.

The Pope – his views on economic and political realities
A joint initiative between the Department of Public Policy and Theology Students
The Department of Public Policy will be joining its resources with Għaqda
Studenti tat-Teoloġija to organise an interactive worshop on the latest encyclical,
Caritas in Veritate, issued by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. The activity is scheduled to be held on Saturday morning, 27th March 2010 at a venue that will be communicated in the coming weeks. Refreshments will be served at the end of the event at around 12:30.
Apart from identifying contemporary economic and political realities that are impacting the standard of living of nations and peoples alike, the Papal letter, strengthens the principle that the human being must be right in the centre of economic development, and thus strengthening the values of the human person is a necessity for sustainable social and economic growth. The document draws on the past tradition of Catholic social thought and provides an ethical foundation that must include and transcend politics in addressing the current crises and emerging signs of the time.
The workshop is specifically targeted to all students in the Department of Public
Policy, including Diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate students. Our graduates from the Department’s versatile alumni section are also welcome to attend and participate. The activity will also be attended by students who are pursuing their studies at the Faculty of Theology. The programme of the event will include key note speeches from the two organising academic bodies, together with a panel of experts who will continue to discuss the implications of the Papal Letter and answer to questions from the floor.
The event is being co-ordinated by Mario Tomas Vassallo, resident academic at the Department of Public Policy.
aspetti politi mill-en ċ ċ i, ekonomi ċ i u so ċ jali iklika tal-Papa Benedittu XVI
Inizjattiva mnedija bejn id-Dipartiment tal-Public Policy u l-G tat-Teolo ġ ija.
ħ aqda Studenti

Paper by Maltese Sociologists at International Green Economics
Conference
Sociologists Michael Briguglio and Maria Brown recently participated in the internation al conference of the Green Economics Institute entitled 'Greening the Economy', which was held at the University of Oxford last November to help the Green Economics Insti tute's Delegation to the Copenhagen Climate summit. The conference included top speakers such as UNESCO economist, author of the Kyoto protocol and member of the IPCC panel, Graciela Chichilnisky; Geographer David Simon from the
University of London; and Economist Miriam Kennet, Environmental Change
Institute, Oxford University, and Director Green Economics Institute.
Michael Briguglio and Maria Brown - the only Maltese participants in the conference – participated with a co-authored paper entitled 'Global and European Institutional perspectives of the Green
Economy, and Civil Society NGOs perspective’. The principal research findings were presented by Michael Briguglio. Maria Brown is a part time member of staff at the Department of Public Policy.
The paper by Michael Briguglio and Maria Brown explores the usage of social capital by Maltese Environmental Non-Governmental Organisations in their lobbying strategies and access to resources, particularly within the context of Malta as a new EU member state. The findings of the empirical research carried out in this regard show that as regards lobbying, Maltese
ENGOs tend to prefer forming homogenous alliances with similar organisations. Besides, there is no direct link between access to resources and usage of social capital.
The paper is published in the proceedings of the conference.
Reference:
Briguglio, Michael and Brown, Maria, (2009). Global and European
Institutional Perspectives of the Green Economy, and Civil Society NGOs perspective, in Kennet, M. and Baster, N. (2009) Proceedings: Preparing for Copenhagen COP15, Climate change and economics, the battleground of the growth/development paradox. Green Economics Conference 28 November
2009 at Oxford University Club, pp.52-66. A Green Economics Institute
Publication.
More information available at: http://www.greeneconomics.org.uk/ http://malta.academia.edu/MichaelBriguglio http://malta.academia.edu/MariaBrown

The students who graduated Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in Public
Policy at the end of November 2009 are the following:
Gianfranco Abela, Dennis Calleja, Charlene Caruana, Lindsey Cutajar,
Andrea Paul Debattista, Leonard Scerri, Robert Tabone Valetta and
Joseph Vella.
On behalf of the Department of Public Policy, the editor wishes them all the best in their respective chosen careers.

Students or staff members who have department related information which they would like to include in the next
newsletter may contact Robert at robert.micallef@um.edu.mt
Newsletter Editor:
Robert Micallef
Resident Academic
Department of Public Policy
Faculty of Economics
Management and Accountancy
Msida 2080
Tel: 2340 3358
E-mail: publicpolicy.fema@um.edu.mt