CUNY CREST Institute Faculty Lead CUNY Delegation’s Visit to Qatar

CUNY CREST Institute Faculty Lead CUNY Delegation’s Visit to Qatar

During March and April, the CUNY/US team comprising of faculty and administrators from Bronx Community College (BCC), York College, Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) and Medgar Evers College visited Qatar as guests of Discover Qatar, Qatar Airways and Qatar Foundation. The purpose of the trip was to explore opportunities for CUNY students and faculty to collaborate on research with organizations in Qatar. The initiative was led by CUNY CREST Institute faculty and members of the institute’s International Collaborations and Global Networking pillar, Prof. Paramita Sen and Prof. Neal Phillip

The CUNY delegation for the first visit (March 6-12) included Prof. Sen, Prof. Phillip, Prof. Kamal Ismail (BCC), Prof. Panayiotis Meleties (York College), VP Sanjay Ramdath (BMCC/CUNY), President Anthony Munroe (BMCC) while the CUNY delegation for the second visit (April 3 – 6, 2023) included Prof. Phillip and Prof. Dereck Skeete of Medgar Evers College.

Through interactions with academic & non-profit organizations and the local residents of Qatar, the CUNY team learnt about the geography, climate, and culture of this important middle-east region of the world.

During the visit in March, the CUNY delegation  attended the Earthna Summit organized by Qatar Foundation. During the summit, the team gained the opportunity to learn about the best practices and policies to create a sustainable environment as well as interact with renowned environmentalist such as Jane Goodall.

During the second visit to Qatar in April, the CUNY team gathered insights on the scope of hosting an event similar to the Earthna Summit in India along with its collaborating partners.  

During the visit to the University of Qatar, the US delegate learnt about research collaboration opportunities in the STEM field, including Environmental Science, Marine Ecology, Desert Ecology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Geology, and Biology etc., through the university’s labs/facilities that are equipped with the state-of-the-art instrumentation. During the Qatar university’s facilities tour led by Dr. Hassan, the CUNY team discussed opportunities for its students to conduct water quality investigations using the marine vessel owned by the university.

Further, the CUNY Delegate met Katia Lauciello from Qatar Airways to discuss internship opportunities for CUNY students with Qatar Airways in Doha and in other locations served by the airline.

The team’s visit to the Qatar Foundation was very enlightening. The foundation’s work to protect the environment is truly inspiring. Further, the team learnt about universities from the United States that have set up campuses in Education City in Doha. They also visited the Inland Sea and were able to bring their backpack weather station as well as take weather and carbon dioxide gas readings.