01 Aug MEDRC Alumni Forum held in Jordan
The annual MEDRC Alumni Forum took place in Jordan on 25 July, with live events as well as online participation via Zoom. It was the 4th edition of the Forums, the first of which took place in 2018. To comply with measures against the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic, the events were attended by a limited number of participants and also held online via Zoom.
The Forum theme was aligned with the UN World Water theme for 2021: Valuing Water. It consisted of 3 panels with subthemes focusing on the water-energy-food nexus, and the inclusion of youth and women in the design and implementation of water management strategies. The event was opened with a keynote speech from H.E. Eng. Bashar Bataineh, the General Secretary of the Water Authority of Jordan. Among the other speakers were Jehad Masadeh, Planning Affairs Advisor to the Minister of Youth, as well as representatives of NGOs (Sahara Forest Project Foundation, UNDP, IWMI), the private sector and the various universities involved in MEDRC’s Water Research program. The event concluded with presentations from MEDRC Alumni Eng. Ghada Halaweh (German Jordanian University), on the treatment of olive mill wastewater using dissolved air flotation, and Eng. Baraa Al-Khateeb (Jordan University of Science & Technology), on the use of a high-frequency ultrasound reactor and photovoltaic technology for the destruction of persistent organic pollutants in textile wastewater effluents.
MEDRC Water Research Alumni Forums
The annual Alumni Forums are student-led, student focused events organized by Student Steering Committees in Jordan, consisting of researchers and alumni from MEDRC’s Water Research Fellowship program. The Forums aim to bring together MEDRC Fellows and industry experts in the field of water, agriculture and environment to discuss important, local, regional, and global water challenges in a collaborative environment, while highlighting some of the exceptional water research being conducted in the program in both countries.