Your May 2023 edition
Welcome to the International Insights newsletter, a monthly roundup of news, opportunities and updates with an international focus, curated by Western International for the Western community.
Western students to pitch big idea for low-cost microscope at global competition in June
As the winners of Western’s 2023 World’s Challenge Challenge competition, Team ParaSight is getting ready to represent Western at the Global Final in June, where they will compete against 12 teams from around the globe who have come up with big ideas to address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Their winning idea is a laboratory-grade pathology microscope for a fraction of the cost, powered by computational imaging, that can be used to diagnose malaria in remote and resource-constrained areas.
“According to the World Health Organization, there are almost 250 million cases of malaria every year, and more than 700,000 deaths and the vast majority are in children under five years old,” said team member Robin Cunningham.
“The scariest part is that often you don't know you have it, and then within 24 hours, it can become lethal. Someone I know personally was on vacation, went to bed with a sniffle and woke up in hospital. He was fortunate to be someone with resources, who could afford to be flown by helicopter to the nearest hospital. But, if you're a local resident in a remote village, that's not going to be an option."
Western students travel the globe this summer
Nearly 350 Western students will expand their perspectives and hone new skills while travelling abroad on international learning experiences this summer, as part of programs coordinated through Western International and various Faculties.
In addition to engineering-focused internships offered in Cuba and Western Heads East internships in Kenya, students on faculty-led trips are travelling to Scandinavia, Tuscany, Spain, Italy and Rwanda in May and June, to immerse themselves in language, culture, history and improve their global awareness and cross-cultural skills. Other students are participating in international internships, and research placements around the world this summer.
Watch our Intagram to see photos and videos of their experiences!
Academics Without Borders (AWB): Volunteer Opportuniy
The University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF), Pakistan, faces a pressing need to transform its teaching and learning approach to one that is more interactive, engaging and outcome based.
In partnership with AWB, UAF is seeking one or two volunteers to support this transformation through building capacity in student-centred pedagogies such as activity-based teaching, problem-based learning, and inquiry-based learning.
Volunteers will conduct a situational analysis/needs assessment, hold an orientation session, develop and deliver a train-the trainer workshop in student-centred pedagogies for faculty members, and develop an implementation plan for the participants to expand the training to other faculty members across the institution.
Application deadline: June 23, 2023
Support The Global Undergraduate Awards
The deadline for students to submit to The Global Undergraduate Awards (UA) is June 7. Open to students and graduates from the classes of 2022, 2023 and 2024, this free international pan-disciplinary competition recognizes top coursework from around the world. Please encourage students you know to enter up to three pieces of work!
The UA program is also seeking faculty members to participate as judges for their category panels. If you are interested, please contact WesternUA@uwo.ca.
Pictured above: Ziya Tong, author of The Reality Bubble and award-winning broadcaster.
Join us for the World's Challenge Challenge Global Final Public Events
Members of the Western community are invited to attend these special events taking place as part of the 2023 World's Challenge Challenge Global Final.
Ziya Tong Virtual Keynote
June 6, 2023, 11:00 am
Global Final Competition (Hybrid)
June 8, 2023, 9:30 am – 2:00 pm
International Orientation: August 30 to September 2
Western International is developing an exciting schedule to welcome new international and exchange students this fall. Students will be invited to take part in programming designed to help them:
- learn important information about Western,
- get connected with resources across campus,
- make friends and connections to last,
- and much more!
Students can visit our International Student Orientation website to see a schedule of events, photos of previous orientations, and access resources designed to ease their transition to Western and Canada.
Have questions? Contact iescwelcome@uwo.ca.
Did you know?
Western is a proud member of Scholars at Risk, an international network of institutions and individuals working to promote academic freedom and to defend the human rights of scholars worldwide. As a member of the Canadian section of Scholars at Risk, Western opens the door to scholars facing severe human rights abuses in their home country so that they may continue their work in a safe environment.
If you have ideas, suggestions or opportunities with an international focus to share, please let us know at wicomms@uwo.ca.
