College ties strengthened in Africa and Asia

While the Easter break may offer the chance for students to take an academic recharge before the rigours of Trinity Term, for many Hall Fellows and tutors it’s business as usual. Teddy Hall Principal Keith Gull utilised the time to maintain global academic and development ties for the University and the College.

A trip spanning several continents included the renewal of his long-standing teaching ties with Africa during a visit to Ghana, and keynote speeches at the Osaka University of the Arts.

Professor Gull travelled to Ghana as a member of the awards committee for the Africa Awards, a joint scheme run by the Royal Society and Leverhulme Trust. It encourages collaborative research projects between UK researchers and scientists based at research institutions in Ghana and Tanzania. The Principal is one of a group of Fellows of the Royal Society assessing progress of the projects.

During the visit he also chaired a discussion session on graduate education and careers of young academics in Africa.

Pictured below are the Principal with Asilatu Sheconge (an MSc student from Tanzania) and Professor Lorna Casselton, Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society.

The Principal has taught courses for young African scientists over a number of years in both Ghana and Tanzania. Dr Eva Gluenz, a Fellow by Special Election at the Hall and Simon Spiro, a member of the MCR, both assisted in the 2011 course on infectious disease and molecular biology held in Morogoro, Tanzania.

“Further fundraising efforts will allow more Hall students from different disciplines to contribute to teaching on such graduate level courses in Africa,” said Professor Gull.

The Africa Awards were launched in 2008 as a partnership of the Royal Society with the Leverhulme Trust. The scheme is intended to assist in strengthening the research and training capacity in research institutions in Ghana and Tanzania through specific skills transfer to the African institutions. It covers all areas of the life and physical sciences, including engineering under Royal Society’s remit, and in the first phase of the scheme 18 grants have been awarded to support research and training in both African countries.

The Principal and Dr Dianne Gull then visited Japan at the invitation of the Osaka University of the Arts. Professor Gull gave the Matriculation address to new students beginning their academic year at the University, the University Junior College and Osaka College of Art.

The Hall has a long-standing relationship with Osaka, and Japanese students visit the College each summer.

The Principal and Dianne later visited Tokyo to host an Aularian dinner. Pictured below (from left to right) are: Professor Tomo Nakano, Ms Maho Sato, Mr Akira Mitsumasu, Mr Andrew Till, The Principal, Dr Dianne Gull, Ms Sun Song Kim, Ms Mayumi Azuma.