Antoinette Nyomba, a May 2009 graduate with a Professional Degree in Environmental and Energy Management, recently held an information session to provide background to interested stakeholders on an initiative to introduce a Green City concept in her home country, the West African nation of Gabon. The information session was held in the Carriage House Hotel in Washington, D.C. in December 2009. Antoinette’s effort to move the concept forward spring from her Professional Degree project, which was entitled “Lébamba-Bongolo Gabonese Green City: A Solution to Environmental Health and Energy Issues, Poverty and Rural Depopulation.” Her concept recently became more viable by the announcement of new Gabonese President Ali Bongo that one of the three pillars of his vision for “Emerging Gabon” is “Green Gabon.” Although Antoinette’s concept is focused on a single city (Lébamba-Bongolo), the concept has grown to encompass all cities in Gabon. That evolution of the concept likely will increase its appeal to the new President. Since finishing her degree, Antoinette has decided to continue advocating the desirability of transforming Gabonese villages and municipalities into green cities prior to the Gabonese municipal elections that are scheduled to be conducted on 2012. According to Antoinette, “In Africa, the political will comes before the law and the science. I am in a better place to negotiate from USA through the Gabonese Embassy.” She hopes the Gabonese Embassy will endorse and to introduce the Gabonese Cities Greening process officially to the new President soon.
Dr. Li-Chun Wu recently was named Chairman of the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management and promoted to Associate Professor at the China University of Science and Technology (CUST) in Taiwan, Republic of China (see related article in this issue). Li-Chun is a 2000 E&EM; doctoral graduate. Li-Chun’s doctoral research in the E&EM; program was entitled "Development of a Decision-Making Model for Hazardous Sludge Disposal Management in Newly Industrialized Countries of Asia: The Case of the Four Tigers.”
Jim Lynch, an E&EM; Master of Science graduate in 2007 and now an Environmental Engineer with the Office of Environmental Management at the U.S. Department of Energy, recently was interviewed for the “Leaders of Tomorrow” column in the March/April 2010 edition DOE's Environmental Management newsletter. You can see the newsletter by clicking on this link: DOE Environmental Management Newsletter. Jim says that he presently is supporting the DOE Office of Environmental Management’s Communications and External Affairs Division. He has been been helping with annual briefings on Capitol Hill hosted by House Representative Doc Hastings (R-WA). Jim says “It's been a great opportunity and I've been getting to meet all field site managers from around the country. Working for the communication's folks has been an interesting experience for an engineer, but I think it helps them out as well since we're doing a lot of technical work and presentations.”
EEM Master’s student Dulce Helena Meldau Benke recently assumed a position as an International Policy Consultant with the International Bioenergy and Sustainability Initiative, United Nations Foundation, in Geneva, Switzerland. Dulce currently is completing her master’s thesis in the area of cleaner production.
EEM Doctoral graduate Dr. Amjad Ali moved in February 2010 from the American Consulting Engineers Council to become the Director, Center for Security Studies at the University of Maryland University College. In his new position, Amjad is responsible for the University's initiatives and programs of cyber security and homeland security. More information about Amjad’s program can be seen at: http://www.umuc.edu/securitystudies/index.shtml.
Current EEM Master’s student Mansi Talwar joined the Environmental Law Institute in May 2010. At ELI, Mansi will be working in support of the National Wetlands Newsletter. More inform National Wetlands Newsletter. More information about the National Wetlands Newsletter can be seen at http://www.wetlandsnewsletter.org/about.cfm.
Current EEM Master’s student Moses Adoko, currently with the Earth Sciences Program at the National Aeronautical and Space Administration, recently supported a NASA workshop on “Biodiversity and Ecological Forecasting.” The workshop was conducted at the Hilton Embassy Hotel in Washington, D.C. in May 2010. Information about the program can be seen at the following link: NASA Workshop on Biodiversity and Ecological Forecasting.