Penn State's Alliance for Education, Science, Engineering, and Design with Africa (AESEDA) will host a joint symposium with the African-led Partnership for Skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) to strengthen and expand the Penn State-PASET partnership and collaboration.
The symposium, "Building Sustainable Doctoral Training, Research and Innovative Ecosystems to Develop Transformative Technologies," will be held from noon to 2 p.m. on July 1, in 114 Steidle Building at Penn State University Park. Virtual participants can join via Zoom. The event is free and open to the Penn State community.
PASET is an African-led initiative aimed at strengthening skills in applied sciences, engineering and technology. The symposium will be co-led by Nelson Dzade, incoming director of AESEDA, and Everlyn Nguku, head of the capacity building and institutional development platform of PASET's Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF).
"The symposium underscores Penn State's commitment to building global partnerships," said Lee Kump, the John Leone Dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. "By partnering with PASET, we are creating opportunities for our faculty to work with highly motivated and experienced African scholars and to engage in research that has real impact in Pennsylvania, Africa and around the world."
The symposium follows the ongoing signing of a memorandum of understanding between Penn State and PASET to strengthen the science, technology and innovation capabilities of sub-Saharan African countries for sustainable economic growth and development. Penn State will serve as an international partner institution with PASET, supporting efforts to strengthen doctoral education, research excellence and institutional capacity across African universities.
"The Penn State-PASET partnership envisions creation of 'sandwich' Ph.D. programs and faculty exchanges with RSIF's African partner universities," said Dzade, Virginia S. and Philip L. Walker Jr. Faculty Fellow in Materials Science and Engineering and the Fuel Sciences in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. "By hosting Ph.D. scholars from select African universities, Penn State will further its commitment to research on the grand challenges facing humanity, namely energy, critical materials and minerals, climate change, food security and artificial intelligence. The partnership will also contribute to PASET's goal of creating a stock of highly skilled scientists and innovators in the applied sciences, engineering and technology that Africa needs."
Penn State leadership, including Josh Davis, senior vice provost and chief of staff, and John Mauro, soon-to-be interim dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, and the PASET delegation will give presentations followed by a Q&A session.
By attending the symposium, participants will have the opportunity to learn about PASET-RSIF priority research areas of energy, including renewables; mining, mineral and materials engineering; food security and agribusiness; information and communication technologies, including big data and artificial intelligence; and climate change. Participants will also discover how to attract highly motivated and experienced RSIF-funded scholars, including doctoral students and postdocs, who will bring an international viewpoint to research groups. In addition to attending the symposium, the PASET delegation will meet with Penn State leadership, provost, college deans, department heads, AESEDA faculty and students.
RSIF is a flagship program of PASET that was launched in 2015 and aims to strengthen institutional capacity for quality, sustainable doctoral training, research and innovation in transformative technologies in sub-Saharan Africa. It is funded by African governments, the World Bank and the Government of Korea and facilitated by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Nairobi, Kenya.
About AESEDA
AESEDA serves as a coordinating body that promotes Penn State's engagement in Africa. Its mission is to help build partnerships with African institutions that develop and foster collaboration and mutually beneficial programs. The emphasis is on programs that integrate research with education while improving the human condition and enhancing economic vitality for African populations.
