Tom is GEO’s Senior Partnerships Manager for East and South East Asia. Here he tells us more about his work and UCL’s recent activity in both regions.

What is your role in GEO?

I develop and manage the portfolio of existing and potential partnerships for UCL in East and South East Asia, in line with UCL’s Global Engagement Strategy.

UCL has some really fascinating partnerships in both regions – from the UCL Institute of Education Confucius Institute leading the £10m Department for Education-funded Mandarin Excellence Programme, to UCL School of Life and Medical Sciences collaborating with the HRH Chulabhorn College of Medical Science on widening access to healthcare in Thailand.

You recently returned from a visit to China, led by Provost. How did the trip go?

The China visit went very well, incorporating visits to university partners as well as to the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chinese Academy of Sciences and the British Ambassador. UCL has been enjoying a deeper strategic partnership with Peking University (PKU) and during the trip we launched the Beijing International MBA – a collaboration between PKU’s National School of Development and UCL’s School of Management. The agreement represents a shared commitment that our two institutions have to collaborate and have a greater impact.

At Hong Kong University, UCL’s Vice-Provost Research announced a call for collaborative research proposals that address UCL Grand Challenges, under the new three-year HKU-UCL Global Strategic Partnership Fund. The purpose of this funding is to provide the necessary initial support to enable HKU and UCL academic staff to enhance existing collaboration or to pursue new, multilateral or cross-disciplinary research projects. This will complement UCL’s Global Engagement Funds in supporting grassroots international partnerships development across all UCL faculties.

It was also very exciting launching the Campaign for UCL in China. We have an enthusiastic alumni network across China and the campaign is proving a great way to engage them in supporting the ongoing work of UCL’s diverse academic and student body to work with partners to address some of the biggest challenges we face in the 21^st century.

How can people keep up to date with UCL’s activity in East and South East Asia?

UCL’s collaborations in both regions are very varied, ranging from academic partnerships with overseas universities to engagement with governments, funding bodies and corporate partners.

Our regional networks, led by Director Katherine Carruthers (Pro-Vice-Provost, East Asia) and Professor Nicholas Phelps (Pro-Vice-Provost, South East Asia) are the best way to keep up to speed in terms of UCL’s collaborations there and funding opportunities. You can sign up here.

There are some great initiatives for students in both regions too. For example, the Yenching Academy at PKU is currently inviting applications from UCL students to spend a year in Beijing doing a fully funded Master’s programme in China Studies – an incredible opportunity.

What are you working on at the moment?

I’m currently preparing for a delegation visit to Australia in December, led by the Vice-Provost International Dame Nicola Brewer, which will take in visits to various partners and stakeholders in three cities: Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide.

UCL Engineering enjoys a continuing strong partnership with the Future Industries Institute at the University of South Australia (UniSA), focusing on education and research in the sustainable management and use of minerals, energy and natural resources. This year, the collaboration launched a new Post-Graduate Taught MSc Programme on Global Management of Natural Resources. The upcoming visit will be a great opportunity to touch base with our colleagues in Australia and discuss our ongoing and upcoming collaborations.

Contact Tom on:

t.windle@ucl.ac.uk
+44 (0)20 3108 7784 / internal 57784

On the day of the EU referendum results, UCL’s Engineering faculty committed to form a ‘European campus without borders’ with partners in Italy, France and Germany.

The innovative Alliance4Tech collaboration means UCL has joined forces with leading technical institutions in cities as global as London: CentraleSupélec in Paris, Politecnico di Milano and TU Berlin.

The partnership will offer students from each institution a multi-layered, ‘pan-European’ view to their work, enhancing their knowledge and enriching their study experience.

UCL departments involved in the partnership include Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, Biochemical Engineering and the School of Management.

Shared strategy and values

The strategic alliance will:

• promote common programmes and encourage student mobility, with the opportunity to spend time at partner universities
• facilitate internships or mentoring opportunities with corporate partners
• encourage exchange of faculty members, as well as double appointments
• share critical technological infrastructures to ensure critical mass

Promoting shared values, including cultural diversity, entrepreneurship, social responsibility and creativity, the initiative will also offer digital learning opportunities to facilitate access.

Open collaboration

Professor Eli Keshavarz-Moore, Vice-Dean (International) for Engineering, said: “UCL values its European staff and students immensely and this exciting partnership with leading institutions across the continent will offer an excellent gateway to learn from each other and deepen our already strong links.

“Globalisation is affecting European Universities both in education and in research and this collaboration will be a great way for us to openly share knowledge and expertise in emerging areas.”

Professor Stefano Ronchi, Rector’s delegate for international relations in Europe at Politecnico di Milano, added: “European universities will need huge efforts and investments in the future to sustain their competitiveness and to provide high quality research and education in the global world we are facing.

“One viable option is collaboration and integration: by creating strong and selected strategic partnerships, universities will be able to find synergies and economies of scale enabling the launch of both education and research initiatives to be attractive and to compete at a global level. This is why Alliance4Tech is a strategic initiative for research and higher education within our continent.”

Links:

• Visit the Alliance4Tech website
• Find out more about Politecnico di Milano, CentraleSupélec and TU Berlin
• Read more UCL Engineering news