The Fulbright Academy is seeking individuals from around the world to serve on Academy committees.

We currently have five programs that could benefit from your input. These initiatives are funded by outside partners, and they bring together Fulbright scholars and other experts to address specific topics.

1. Committee on Digital Archives; seed funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This project is addressing access to and distribution of electronic information. As part of this project, we will be hosting a Fulbright Film Festival next spring.

2. Committee on Science Literacy; seed funding through a NSF contract to Indiana University. This will be a multi-year initiative, and we are starting with a small project that focuses on public perceptions of bacteria.

3. Committee on Clinical Research Ethics; seed funding from the American Board of Healthcare Law & Medicine. This bioethics project compares national and international codes and standards for conducting research on human subjects.

4. History of Science & Impacts of Fulbright; seed funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This project is collecting stories and other data to describe the positive impact that the Fulbright program has on science and the world at large.

5. Meetings Committee. This committee helps plan and organize meetings, such as the March 2007 Conference in Panama, the 2008 Conference in Asia, and forums held around the world.

6. Board of Directors & Advisory Board. These boards oversee the work of the Academy and help it establish relationships with individuals, foundations, organizations, agencies, and institutions of higher education.

If you would like to be involved in any of these committees, please send an email to info@FulbrightAcademy.org.

Fulbright grantees, alumni and friends are invited to the Fulbright Academy's 2007 Fulbrighters in Science Conference. This 3.5 day conference will be held in Panama City, Panama in March 2007. Situated at Central America’s narrowest point, Panama City has been a center for the movement of people and goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans for centuries. The Academy’s program will include private tours of parks, scientific research stations, and the Panama Canal. The Canal and the Canal Zone (an area around the canal) were administered by the United States from 1903 until 1979.

The 3.5-day conference will have panels and discussions on topics such as ecology, sustainable economic development, chemistry, education, engineering, geography, medicine, and digital learning. Alumni from the region and around the world are involved in the planning. If you would like to propose a panel, please visit the Academy's website.

Corporate and institutional sponsors are assisting with the conference through their cash donations or in-kind services. They play a critical role, for example by allowing us to offer reduced-rate registrations and travel assistance to young Fulbrighters and to individuals from developing countries.

If you would like to propose a panel, help with the planning or sponsor the conference, please contact us at info@FulbrightAcademy.org. The conference language is English.

Two Fulbrighters have been named Minister of Culture. Prof. Yuli Tamir was named Minister of Education, Culture and Sports for Israel on May 4. She had been a Fulbrighter in the United States in 1994-95. Fulbrighter Maria Elena Carballo-Castegnaro was appointed Minister of Culture for Costa Rica on April 24. In the 1980s, Ms. Carballo obtained her masters and doctorate degrees on a Fulbright to Brandeis University. If you are aware of other Fulbrighters currently holding ministerial posts in a national government, please send us a note. We would like to invite some of them to our 2007 conference in Panama.

In Ecuador, US Ambassador Jewell hosted the Minister of Education and 360 current and former Fulbrighters at a May 17 luncheon celebrating the Fulbright program’s 50th anniversary in Ecuador. In his remarks, Minister Raúl Vallejo, who is a former Fulbrighter, emphasized the life-changing impact of the Fulbright program on its participants. The Ambassador presented a plaque to Fulbrighter Eugenia del Pino, who recently became the first Ecuadorian to be named to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. A similar reception was held in El Salvador, where US Ambassador Barclay hosted a program for 100 graduates of USG-sponsored exchange programs -- Fulbright, Campus, and Humphrey -- on Thursday, April 27.

Fulbright alumnus Professor Graeme Wake (1994 Senior Scholar) was awarded the Australian and New Zealand Industrial and Applied Mathematics (ANZIAM) Medal for 2006 at the organization's conference in February. Graeme, Professor of Industrial Mathematics at Massey University, is the first New Zealander to be presented the medal, which recognizes research achievements, activities enhancing applied or industrial mathematics, and contributions to ANZIAM. Graeme has served as Chair and Deputy Chair of the organization, which is a division of the Australian Mathematical Society, and currently heads its Mathematics-in-Industry program.

Fulbright alumni Professor Michael Pender (1989 Travel Grant) and John Fitzmaurice (1954 Graduate Student) were both honored at the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) Awards in March. Michael, Professor of Geotechnical Engineering at the University of Auckland, received the Turner Award for Professional Commitment in recognition of his continuing contribution to the engineering profession. John was awarded the Fulton-Downer Gold Medal (the President's Award for public service) in recognition of his commitment to immigrant engineers.

June 6: Webchat with Astronauts onboard the International Space Station.

Pavel Vinogradov (Expedition 13 Commander) and Jeffrey Williams (Flight Engineer and NASA Science Officer) will join State Alumni live to answer alumni questions Tuesday, June 6, 2006, at 1:15pm EDT (17:15 GMT). To submit a question now or during the live event, log into State Alumni (https://alumni.state.gov/) and click the "Q&A Live" link in the blue navigation bar at the top of the screen. If you have not yet registered as an alumnus, you may do so by clicking "Join Now" on the login page. This program is limited to alumni of State Department programs.

June 8: European Researchers' Get-Together, Washington, DC.

The European Commission has invited the Academy and its members and friends to a reception, to be held at the National Geographic Society building next Thursday evening. The program is hosted by John Bruton, Ambassador of the EC to the USA; Janez Potocnik, EC Commissioner for Science & Research; and Fotis Kafatos, Chairman of the Scientific Council of the European Research Council. If you would like to attend this meeting, please contact the Fulbright Academy as soon as possible.

June 28-29: Fulbright Symposium on Maritime Governance and Security, University of Tasmania.

This Symposium will bring together leading specialists in academia and policy circles from Australia, the United States and Asia, in order to provide answers to some of the pressing challenges associated with maritime governance and security within the US-Australia relationship. It is being organized by the Fulbright Commission in Australia: www.fulbright.com.au.

We are seeking hosts and partners for two types of meetings.

1. Our 2008 Annual Conference will be held in Asia. The Academy is issuing a Request for Proposals from Fulbright Alumni Organizations in Asia to serve as institutional partners in organizing that conference. Your involvement would begin this year through your participation on the 2007 Conference Committees and with your attendance at the March 2007 Conference in Panama.

2. The "Fulbright Forums" are meetings held around the world in collaboration with other institutions - Fulbright Commissions, Alumni Groups, Universities and other organizations. The goal of these forums is to jointly promote Fulbright exchanges, the Fulbright Academy and your institution. If you are organizing an event, please contact us to see if we can make it a "Fulbright Forum" by incorporating some Fulbrighters into the program or inviting local Fulbrighters to attend.

Our newest project got off to a great start in May at the UNESCO Consultation on Codes of Ethics in Bangkok on May 15-16. The meeting was one of three public consultations held in Asia under the auspices of UNESCO’s Programme on the Ethics of Science and Technology. This UNESCO programme covers two primary areas of ethical reflection: (1) bioethics, addressing concerns stemming from advances in life sciences and (2) ethics of science and technology, addressing other areas of applied ethics in relation to scientific and social developments.

At the meeting, Dr. Thomas Gionis spoke about our Joint Study Committee on Clinical Research Ethics. Dr. Gionis chairs this FAST Committee. Its goal is to expand society’s understanding of the ethical debate concerning international protections for human subjects of clinical research and experimentation throughout the world. The topic of international legal protections for human subjects of clinical research is particularly important and germane to researchers who engage in research and experimentation in countries around the world. Fulbright scholars in many fields are involved in this type of research, hence the involvement of Fulbright Academy.

In particular, our Committee will be examining the research conduct in foreign countries and topic of prior informed consent in the international context. Dr. Gionis will be presenting some of our research at the Pacific Regional Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in June, and Dr. Gionis will be representing the Joint Study Committee at the 8th World Congress on Bioethics in Beijing in August.

As mentioned earlier in the newsletter, we are seeking additional committee members for among the Fulbright community, and if you would like to participate, please send an email to ehoward@FulbrightAcademy.org.

The Fulbright Academy is a non-profit membership-based organization that serves scientists, executives, and scholars worldwide. Our sponsors and supporters include institutional and individual members, Fulbright alumni groups and commissions, corporations/businesses, and foundations. If you would like information on becoming a supporter or institutional member, please send an email to info@FulbrightAcademy.org

After three years of operation, the Fulbright Academy has a growing membership base. By joining the Academy, you will be supporting our work - our conferences, the study committees, and our Fulbright Forums. You will receive invitations to special events, and we also help members link up with other Fulbrighters in their respective fields.

Individual memberships start at $60, with reduced rates available for students, retired individuals and those living in low- and middle-income countries.

Institutions in the US and elsewhere are collaborating with the Academy on several projects and programs. These collaborations typically are funded by a grant or contract from a foundation or agency. The first step is in this process typically is joining as an institutional member. Information on institutional memberships is available on our website.

The Fulbright Academy is not affiliated with the US State Department, the US Fulbright Association or the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. We are independently funded, and so your support is very important to us. We

As a fellow grantee of the program (Germany '89), I look forward to having you as a member and participant.

Sincerely,

Mr. Eric S. Howard, Executive Director