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Welcome to the Fulbright Academy's monthly electronic
newsbulletin, which is sent to leaders in scientific and technical fields
in the US and around the world. This month's issue takes a quick look at
programs that get youth excited about sustainable development.
The Academy is an independent non-profit organization
managed by a dedicated group of volunteers. The Academy receives support
from many organizations interested in developing a network of leaders in
science and technology. It is not affiliated with the US State Department,
which oversees and partially funds the global Fulbright Exchange Program.
The Fulbright program is not responsible for the content of this bulletin,
and it cannot be assumed that they approve or endorse any material
appearing in it. Donations to Fulbright Academy are not used to support
educational exchanges, but rather to support our global mission of
networking leaders in fields such as basic science, applied science,
medicine, and engineering.
Fellowship Program at the UN for International Fulbrighters 
The Institute of International Education (IIE) and the United Nations
recently announced the UN Fulbright Fellowship Program, a new professional
opportunity for up to 20 students who are currently studying in the US as
Fulbright Fellows. Drawing on the United Nations' professional networks
and the Fulbright Program's roster of future leaders from around the
world, this new program will provide a formative experience to some of the
world's best and brightest students, who can contribute to the advancement
of the UN's work, learn from UN staff, and gain valuable professional
experience.
Fulbright students from developing countries and East Central
Europe/Newly Independent States will be invited to apply for fellowships
at the United Nations beginning this summer. Students will participate in
this career-enhancing program for up to six months after completing their
Fulbright academic work and before returning to their home countries.
The UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, is a Fulbrighter himself, and he
has given full support to the UN Fulbright Fellowship Program. The program
"has the potential to provide the Organization with specialized expertise
and to build support for the work of the United Nations among key global
constituencies."
Funding for the program comes from the UN Foundation. For additional
information, see the IIE webpage. This article was derived from an IIE
press release dated 12/2/2002.
Find out more....
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Learning About Movement in Space |
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 You may have heard of Dean Kamen
and his most recent invention, the Segway. The Segway is a
revolution in human transportation -- it is an electric two-wheeled
personal transportation device. You stand on it, and it moves in the
direction that you lean.
Dean Kamen is excited about engineering and about innovation, and
about ten years ago he started a program to motivate young people to
pursue opportunities in science, technology and engineering. FIRST
(For Inspiration Recognition of Science & Technology) designs
accessible, innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge
and life skills among students. The project for the coming year is
build a robot for conducting exploration on Mars.
The FIRST Robotics Competition has grown into a multinational
competition that brings professionals and young people together to
solve an engineering design problem in an intense and competitive
way. The program is a life-changing, career-molding experience- and
a lot of fun. In 2003 the robot competition will reach more than
20,000 high school students. A newer program is the FIRST LEGO
League, which now reaches over 26,000 children in the United States
and over 5,000 children from other countries around the world.
The Fulbright Academy has initiated discussions with FIRST staff
to see how we can help. For example, we are a network of
professionals, and they need hundreds of engineers and science
professionals who serve as mentors/partners in the comptitions. For
further information, please contact the Academy at 866-327- 4448 or
look at the FRIST website.
For more
information »
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Learning About Movement Under Water |
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 By looking at marine
animals--fish and squid, Erik Anderson trys to determine mechanisms
in their swimming that might improve marine vehicles, including
those for deep ocean exploration and archeology, as well as for
marine industry, search and rescue and mapping support. The picture
shows him observing an eel with the camera-laser-robot system.
(Photo by Tom Kleindinst)
"Teaching is one of my favorite things to do and to think about.
For four years I was a high school science teacher at an
international school in Germany." One of his innovations in
teaching, a technique on simplifying significant figures, was
published in the National Science Teacher Association's journal "The
Science Teacher" in October 1994. Mr. Anderson then got a Fulbright
to study marine biofluid dynamics at St. Francis Xavier University
in Nova Scotia.
Although he is working on a Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering at MIT and
the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), he continues to
speak regularly to lay groups, such as a trustees event at WHOI
about science, and a WHOI event for local high school teachers.
"I thoroughly enjoy revealing to lay people and teachers the
beautiful simplicity in the apparent complexity of science." The
Fulbright Academy welcomes individuals such as Mr. Anderson to our
organization. If you would like to join us, please call us
866-327-4448 or send us an email at info@fulbrighter.org
For
a longer article on Erik's research »
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Selected Fulbrighters -- Sustainable Development |
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| For many people, their heros are sport stars,
actors, and the super-rich. Starting with this month, we include a
list of leading Fulbrighters in specific fields. While they may not
be heros in the minds of the public, they are individuals who have
made and continue to make important contributions to society.
This month, we look at the broad field of conservation and
sustainable development. The data comes from various websites, and I
apologize in advance -- most of the individuals in this month's list
live and work in the US.
** Muhammad Yunus - Economist and Founder of the Grameen Bank in
Bangladesh ** Kathryn S. Fuller - President of World Wildlife
Fund-US ** J.William Futrell - President of the Environmental Law
Institute ** Peter Eigen - Founder of Transparency International **
Larry Minear - Director of the Humanitarianism and War Project at
Tufts University ** Norman P. Neureiter, Science and Technology
Adviser to the US Secretary of State ** Peter Veit - Regional
Director for Africa in the Institutions and Governance Program at
World Resources Institute ** Hellen G. A. Wangusa - central
coordinator of the African Women's Economic Policy Network ** Dennis
L. Meadows - co-author of "The Limits to Growth" and author of
"Alternatives to Growth" **
You should be able to find additional information on any of these
individuals by doing a search on "www.google.com" or other search
engines. If you have a list of Fulbrighters in your discipline,
please send it to us and we will publish it in the newsletter.
Other Prominent
Fulbrighters »
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Databases of Fulbright Scholars |
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| The Fulbright Association (FA) has recently
placed their database of US Fulbright Scholars on the internet. The
FA is a Washington, DC-based non-profit whose mission is to advocate
increased worldwide support for Fulbright exchanges, enrich the
Fulbright experience, and facilitate life-long interaction among
alumni and current participants living in the United States. The
database is accessible through their website:
www.fulbrightalumni.org
The Council on International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) has also
made a database of scholars available on the web. Their database
focuses on professional and scholar grant awards that were made in
recent years. It includes both US and foreign scholars, along with
information on their host institutions, their home institutions, and
their research interests. The database is accessible through their
website: www.cies.org
A third way to find Fulbright Scholars is through a "google"
search or by using other search engines. Since we are looking for
leaders in particular fields, this is the primary means that the
Fulbright Academy has used to develop our mailing list. We have also
received data from national organizations, such as the Canada- US
Fulbright Program, which has published an Alumni
Directory/Repertoire des anciens.
Fulbright Assn Alumni
Database »
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Teaching Math in Africa |
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| Dr. Jim Tarvin began work with technology and
mathematics teaching in Africa in 1997. Since then, he has visited a
number of schools and participated in conferences. "I try to return
to Southern Africa every six months and visit with colleagues in
mathematics and mathematics education in southern Africa. These are
all very rewarding experiences that continue to amaze me."
Jim is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at Grossmont College
outside of San Diego. One of his goals is to train all secondary
school Maths teachers in Zimbabwe on hand-held caluculator
technology and provide each school with at least one calculator and
a display panel for projecting the imagine on a wall or screen. In
2001 he spent six months at Bindura University of Science Edcuation
(in Bindura, Zimbabe) teaching teachers in an Honours Mathematics
degree program about technology uses in the secondary and tertiary
mathematics classroom.
This past year, Jim and Dr. Stuart Moskowitz of Humboldt State
University demonstrated to teachers in Zimbabwe the ways in which
this kind of technology is utilized in the USA for both teaching and
learning. "We held two weeks of workshops for inservice and
preservice teachers about hand held technologies used in mathematics
classrooms here in the US." Academy members and others are welcome
to contact him at Grossmont at 619-644-7889 or via email
Jim.Tarvin@gcccd.net.
The information above was extracted from two emails that Jim sent
to the Academy. If you have a story about your work that you would
like to share with us, please send us a note: info@fulbrighter.org
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Information on Sustainable Development |
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| Internet publishing has made it possible for
people all over the world to get access to information. The
International Institute for Sustianable Development reports on
international negotiations and collaborates with partners around the
world to support capacity building in developing countries and a
better dialogue between North and South. The Canada-based IISD
focuses on issues such as biodiversity, climate change, measurement
and indicators, international trade and investment, economic policy,
and natural resource management to make development sustainable.
For example, IISD publishes the Earth Negotiations Bulletin, an
electronic bulletin that highlights important activities in the
international arena. In June they will be publishing reports from
the following meetings:
* Fourth Meeting of the UN Open Ended Informal Consultative
Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea, 2-6 June 2003, New York -
Daily and summary issues in English and French * Third Session of
the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), 2-6 June, Geneva - Daily
and summary issues in English and French * UN Framework Convention
on Climate Change 18th Sessions of the Subsidiary Bodies, 4-13 June
2003, Bonn - Daily and summary issues in English, French and Spanish
* Expert Meeting on Consumption and Production Patterns, 16-19 June,
Marrakech - Summary issue in English * Trondheim Conference 2003 -
capacity building and technology transfer, 23-27 June 2003,
Trondheim - Summary issue in English * Seventh Session of the
Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee of the Stockholm Convention
on Persistant Organic Pollucants (POPS), 14-18 July, Geneva - Daily
and summary issues in English and French
To Subscribe to IISD
Bulletins »
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Please Join Us |
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| We greatly appreciate the financial and moral
support that has been given to date by our board members and by
individuals around the country (and the world).
Please consider joining the Academy. Basic membership is
$35/year. Larger donations are welcome. If your firm or institution
would like to be a corporate/instutional sponsor or if you would
like to make a larger donation, please call us toll-free at
866-F-BRIGHT (866-327-4448).
To make a donation, simply click on the icon below, print the
page, and mail or fax it to the Academy.
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