AIT Newsletter October 2017
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The document summarizes recent news and events at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT). It discusses AIT signing an agreement with Northwestern Polytechnical University of China to establish an international community of innovation and entrepreneurship. It also mentions several seminars, workshops, and events that took place including the 50th anniversary celebration of the Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society at AIT. The document provides updates on AIT faculty, staff, and alumni including new appointments and achievements.
AIT Newsletter October 2017
- 1. 1OCTOBER 2017 Asian Institute of Technology OCTOBER 2017 INSIDE ISSUE.. . Recent News / Happenings at AIT..................................................2-3 People...........................................................................................3-4 Seminars/Workshshops/Recent events..........................................5 Backpage.......................................................................................6 AIT JOINS HANDS WITH NPU TO ESTABLISH INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP T he Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) has signed a formal agreement with the Northwestern Poly- technical University (NPU), People’s Republic of China, to establish an “International Community of Inno- vation and Entrepreneurship.” The agreement was signed by Prof. Zhang Wei, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, NPU, and Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai, President, AIT, on 16 September 2017. Prof. Zhang Wei, who is an AIT alumnus, described his AIT days as phenomenal, adding that the Institute is both exhilirating and challenging. This is a place where aca- demic study is fascinating, and student life is terrific, he remarked after returning to AIT after 17 years.“NPU is similar in some ways,” Prof. Zhang Wei said. NPU is known for engineering, particularly in the realm of strate- gic state requirements. Elaborating on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Chairman Zhang remarked that NPU is located in the city of Xi’an, which was the starting point of the ancient Silk Road. Similarly, Thailand lies on the maritime Silk Road. “We believe that the age of cooperation between AIT and NPU has just begun,” Chairman Zhang said.Describing Prof. Worsak as “a man of vision and fresh ideas” and as an inspiring leader and President, Prof. Zhang invited the AIT President to deliver the concluding speech at the clos- ing ceremony NPU’s international conference. (See Page 2) Visiting AIT after a long gap, Prof. Zhang was also de- lighted to meet his advisor Prof. Barbara Igel.
- 2. 2OCTOBER 2017 RECENT NEWS / HAPPENINGS AT AIT From left: Prof. Roger Frank, Dr. Noppadol Phien-wej, and Dr. Za-Chieh Moh. AIT President calls for new BRI universities platform Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai delivering his keynote address. AIT President Prof. Worsak Kanok- Nukulchai has called for the creation of a new platform of universities in the Belt and RoadInitiative(BRI)toprepareanewbreed of intellectuals, who can emerge as globally responsible citizens for the sustainable future of mankind. The AIT President was delivering the key- note address at the Opening Session of the “Belt and Road Initiative (BRI): President’s Forum on Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education” hosted by Shaanxi Provincial People’s Government. Prof. Worsak spoke on the topic “Global Competence for the Sustainable Future of Humankind.” The forum was organized by Xidian Univer- sity, and it was attended by Presidents of 105 Chinese universities and 77 universities from 41 other countries and territories. The event concluded with the proclamation of the “Xi’an Declaration for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Educa- tion” with reference to BRI. The AIT President also delivered the concluding speech at the in- ternational conference on “China’s ties with the Outside World through the Belt and Road Initiative,” which was organized by the Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU) on 23-24 September 2017. The first stop of the AIT delegation to China was Xi’an Jiao- tong University (XJTU), where the University President Prof. Wang Shuguo hoped that bothAIT and Xi’an Jiaotong University can mu- tually benefit under the Belt and Road Initiative. Fifty years after it was founded by Dr. Za- Chieh Moh in 1967 at AIT, the Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society (SEAGS) returned to AIT on 14-15 September 2017 to celebrate its golden jubilee. Founded to promote cooperation among engineers, SEAGS celebrates its golden jubilee at AIT geologists and other scientists in Southeast Asia, and to advance knowledge in the field of geotechnical engineering, SEAGS has played a pioneering role in expansion and recognition of geotechnical sciences in the region. Founder President Dr. Za-Chieh Moh narrated the story of the vision, mission and accomplishments during the five decades of SEAGS. The two-day symposium was jointly organized by the Thai Geotechnical Society, Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society, Association of Geotechnical Societies in SoutheastAsia (AGSSEA), and AIT. Chairing the Advisory Committee was Prof. Roger Frank the President of International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE), who delivered the Presidential address. Delivering the welcome address were Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai, AIT President, Dr. Noppadol Phien- wej, President SEAGS, and Dr. Suttisak Soralump, President Thai Geotechnical Society. Inaugural addresses were delivered by Prof. Ikuo Towhata, VP for Asia ISSMGE, and Prof. San Shyan Lin, Chairman AGSSEA.
- 3. 3OCTOBER 2017 RECENT NEWS / HAPPENINGS AT AIT Dr. Pisut Koomsap AIT to play lead role in curriculum modernization of industrial engineering AIT students at the DAAD function. AIT will take the lead in the mod- ernization of education of industrial engineering in Thailand by devel- oping the curriculum of a Master’s degree program in Industrial Engi- neering for Thailand Sustainable Smart Industry (MSIE4.0). AIT will be the project coordinator of a consortium of nine universities, which has been selected for co- funding from the European Union for the Erasmus+ Capacity Build- ing in Higher Education. Dr. Saeed Ul Hassan AIT students receive certificates at DAAD’s 60th-anniversary celebrations Fourteen AIT students received certificates on the occasion of the sixtieth-anniversary celebra- tions of the German Academic Exchange Service-Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) held on 10 September 2017. The students were honored by Dr. Dorothea Rüland, Secretary- General, DAAD, in the presence of the Ambassador of Germany to Thailand H.E. Mr. Peter Prügel. AIThas16DAADscholars,name- ly Ms. Su Kyaw, Ms. Aye Hlaing, Led by Industrial Systems Engi- neering (ISE) at AIT, MSIE4.0 is a Ms. Yu Kyaw, Ms. Khin Htay, Ms. Han Soe, Ms. Hnin Win, Mr. Phyo Oo, Ms. Kay Kyaw and Ms. Thet Yee (from Myanmar); Mr. Tong Menghour, Mr. Thaileng Thol, Mr. Sean Chanmony, and Mr. Seng Theara (from Cambo- dia) and Ms. Truong Huyen from Vietnam. Ms. Kry Sokna and Mr. Hok Panha from Cambodia are currently on an exchange program in Germany, and were unable to attend the celebrations. three-year project totaling nearly € 980,000.According to project leader Dr. Pisut Koomsap of Industrial Sys- tems Engineering atAIT, the project will be implemented by sixThai uni- versities and three EU universities. It seeks to enhance the capacity of Thai universities in the delivery of a high-quality competency-based cur- riculum which will support sustain- able smart industry (Industry 4.0), while conforming to the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Recent alum receives Honorable Mention Dr. Saeed Ul Hassan, who graduated fromAIT with a PhD. in 2012, is one of the two early career scientists to receive an honorable mention in the Eugene Garfield Award for Innova- tion in Citation Analysis. His work on Measuring Scientific Knowledge Flows by Deploying Citation Con- text Analysis is an extension of his doctoral work at AIT. Saeed currently serves as an As- sistant Professor at Information Technology University (ITU), Punjab, Pakistan. Alumna honored with Nepal Bidya Bhusan Award AIT alumna and former Miss Nepal, Sadichha Shrestha (MBA, 2017) was conferred with the Nepal Bidhya Bhu- san ‘B’medal by the President of Nepal, Bidhya Devi Bhan- dari, on Nepal’s 38th National Education Day, and Interna- tional Literacy Day on 8 September 2017. Nepal Bidhya Bhusan Class ´B´ medals are conferred upon students who complete their Master’s degrees with an outstanding performance. Sadichha Shrestha receving the award.
- 4. 4OCTOBER 2017 PEOPLE AIT alumnus Dr. Somkiat Prajamwong, has been appointed the new Director General of the Royal Irrigation DepartmentofThailand. His appointment was announced at the meeting of the Thai Cabinet on 12 September 2017. Alumnus Dr Somkiat Prajamwong appointed Director General of Royal Irrigation Department Dr. Lai Thi Phuoc Nguyen has joined AIT as Assistant Professor in Regional and Rural Development Planning (RRDP) Program of the De- partment of Development and Sustainability (DDS), School of Environment, Resources and Development (SERD). Dr Lai Thi Phuoc Nguyen joins AIT Prior to joiningAIT, Dr. Nguyen worked as a research- er at the University of Sassari (Italy), working in the Desertification Research Centre for six years. She has also served as lecturer in the School of Geography of the Nottingham University, Malaysia Campus. Dr. Lai Dr. Lai Thi Phuoc Nguyen Dr. Chutiporn Anutariya Dr. Chutiporn Anutariya has joinedAIT asAssociate Pro- fessor in the Department of Information and Communi- cation Technology (ICT) in AIT’s School of Engineer- ing and Technology (SET). Dr. Chutiporn received her Bachelor’s of Science Dr Chutiporn Anutariya joins as Associate Professor in ICT in Statistics with first class honors and gold medal award from Chulalongkorn University. She obtained her Master of Science and Doctor of Technical Sci- ence in Computer Science from AIT. She was a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Telematics, Norwegian University. Her research areas include learning technologies and Massive Open Online Course (MOOCs), database and information systems, knowledge representation and knowledge management, open data and open government data, semantic and linked data technolo- gies, ontologies, web and mobile technologies. Dr. Somkiat Prajamwong holds a PhD in Governance and Complex systems from University of Sassari (Italy) and a Master’s in Development, Innovation and Change from Univer- sity of Bologna (Italy). Her teaching specialization includes rural and environ- mental sociology, agricultural development planning, sustainable development, social data analysis, and project planning and management. Her research areas include adaptation to climate change, environmental and natural resources institu- tions and governance, action research, social learning and multi-stakeholder processes for regional and rural development planning. Dr. Somkiat graduated with a Master’s in Water Resource Engineering in 1987 from AIT, following which he proceeded to the University of Utah for a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Irrigation Engineering. Prior to this ap- pointment, Dr. Somkiat has served as Direc- tor of Project Administration, and as Deputy Director General for Engineering.
- 5. 5OCTOBER 2017 SEMINARS / WORKSHOPS / RECENT EVENTS Dr. Indrajit Pal SEMINAR: From Traditional to Modern Aquaculture: Systems, Issues, and Prospects Prof. Peter Edwards 13 September 2017 REGIONAL WORKSHOP: Adaptation to Groundwater Vulnerability of Asian Cities to Climate Change 8 September 2017 SEMINAR: Digital Education Platforms - The Swayam Initiative Dr. M.S Manna 8 September 2017 SEMINAR: Aquaculture Ecosystems and Integrated Multi- trophic Aquaculture Prof. C. Kwei Lin 12 September 2017 AIT faculty member co-edits book on Disaster Risk Governance AIT’s Dr. Indrajit Pal has co-edited a book titled “Disaster Risk Governance in India and Cross Cutting Issues.” The 19-chapter book, published by Springer, provides an analyti- cal discussion of the status of disaster risk reduction and governance in an Indian con- text. While Dr. Indrajit Pal serves in Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management, in AIT’s Department of Development and Sustainability, co-editor Dr. Rajib Shaw is a professor of Keio University at its Shonan Fujisawa Campus in Japan. SEMINAR: Practical Petrophysics and Quick Look Analysis of Logging Data Greg Heath 21 September 2017 SPECIAL FORUM: Startup Start Now Mr. Ayub Ghauri 28 September 2017 SEMINAR: Research for impact: Experience of Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation – CSIRO (Australia) Dr. Shahriar M Wahid 27 September 2017
- 6. 6OCTOBER 2017 Editor: Bajinder Pal Singh bajinder@ait.asia Designer: Nadhika Mendhaka Photos: Paitoon Tinnapong Samphat Semathong For feedback, contact Office of Media and Communications omco@ait.asia BACKPAGE Follow AIT at • Facebook www.facebook.com/aitasia • YouTube www.youtube.com/aitasia • Twitter www.twitter.com/aitasia • Google+ https://plus.google.com/113705895909660110340/posts • LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/school/10533/ • Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/aitasia • Instagram https://www.instagram.com/aitasia/ Blood Donation Camp: 6 September 2017 Blast from the Past Thirty years ago, AIT celebrated its 50th graduation. Source: AIT Review: October 1987.