|
UM Officials, Students Visit Jordan, Hope for Increased Cooperation
June 8, 2007
OXFORD, Miss. - Water, perhaps more so than oil or terrorism, could one day lead to widespread war in the Middle East as most countries in the area suffer from a shortage and scarcity of the life-giving necessity.
"People outside of the region tend not to hear about the issue," said a U.S. State Department official. "It just doesn't make the news. But there are talks all the time among water specialists. Guaranteeing fair access to water is critical to any peace agreement."
Officials from the University of Mississippi expect the "Joint Engineering Science and Technology Conference," held June 9-12 in Jordan, to advance the vast water resource issues confronting the Middle East. As the only American university participating in the conference, UM is poised to take bold steps into the arena of citizen diplomacy.
"We aim to discuss the science of our educational expertise, along with the cooperative efforts available to solving problems together," said attendee Michael Johannson, UM director of international programs. "With greater consciousness and awareness, we can take a proactive approach to peacemaking efforts in the Middle East."
Besides considering water resources, conference plans also call for addressing homeland security, telecommunications and leadership. The event is co-sponsored by UM, the King Abdullah Design and Development Bureau, the Jordan University of Science and Technology, and Jordan's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
The conference resulted from a commitment by UM Chancellor Robert Khayat and U.S. Sen. Trent Lott to His Majesty King Abdullah II bin Al Hussein of Jordan during his visit to Ole Miss in 2006. At that time, King Abdullah met with UM engineering students and faculty from Jordan and expressed satisfaction with their work in land mine detection and wireless communication systems, as well as other ongoing projects.
"King Abdullah understands the need to have engineering experts in his own country." Johannson said. "When Jordanian students in the U.S. return home, 50 percent can't find jobs. They have a great need, and we're hopeful this visit will lead to future scholarships, as suggested by King Abdullah during his visit, for Jordanian students here at Ole Miss."
UM faculty attending the conference include Mustafa Altinakar, associate director of applied research at the National Center for Computational Hydroscience and Engineering; Mustafa Matalgah, professor of electrical engineering; and Ahmed Al-Ostaz, professor of civil engineering. Four Jordanian engineering graduate students also made the trip.
The conference was organized by UM's Trent Lott Leadership Institute and Office of International Programs in cooperation with various Jordanian universities and institutions.
For more information about the Lott Leadership Institute and International Programs, visit
http://www.lottinst.olemiss.edu/
and
http://www.studyatusa.org/
by Tobie Baker
Newsdesk Story #6237 |
