INspiring student papers win awards
Student paper presentations at the Education without Borders 2009 conference culminated in a ceremony with HE Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Chancellor the Higher Colleges of Technology, presenting awards to best paper presenters across the different themes of the conference.
Following an extensive refereeing process, 44 papers and multimedia presentations were delivered at the conference by student delegates of 19 different nationalities studying at institutions across the world, including two UAE national students from the HCT.
The Tobisha Award for the most outstanding paper was won by Irina Pleva, a Latvian student studying at the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland. In addition to her award, she received a Toshiba computer and an internship at the Toshiba laboratories in Oxford, UK. Irina's paper investigated the burden industry puts onto the environment, and proposes solutions that create eco-industrial networks by establishing correlation between nature's ecosystems and man-made industrial networks.
The Lehigh University – Iacocca Institute Global village special award for best paper by a UAE national student was awarded to Ayesha Al Ateeqi, a final year Bachelor of Education student at the HCT's Abu Dhabi Women's College campus. Her paper, “We have come a long way: Redefining Education and its global challenges in the United Arab Emirates”, outlined the challenges facing educational development in the UAE as the country takes its place in a global society.
Other winners were:
Nikai award for the best Multi-media presentation: Sky Taylor Woodlands (Australia), University of Queensland, Australia, for his presentation The Culture of Consumption: Where do you stand on your Ecological Footprint?
Lehigh University - Iacocca Institute Global Village award for best paper on Economy: Global Solutions for Recovery category: Kalpana Tyagi (India), National University of Singapore, Singapore, for her paper M&As in India and China.
Sorouh award for the best paper in Exchange: Cultural Exchange for Tolerance, Understanding and Peace category: Lauren Carr (Australia), Queensland University of Technology, Australia, for her paper Community Saadaqa: Cultural Understanding Through a Shared Sense of Space.
Abu Dhabi Police award for the best paper on E-World: Harnessing Technology for a Better World category: Joyce Meng (USA), Oxford University, UK, for her paper Internet Microphilanthropy for Education: Case Study on Givology.
Ali & Sons award for the best paper on Environment: A Sustainable Future for our Planet category: Lim Shu Xian Eunice (Singapore), Management Univ., Singapore for her paper Water crisis: a nation's challenge, a global concern, a regional solution.
Al Faraa' award for the best paper in Education: The Role of Education in Meeting Global Challenges category: Aki Nakanishi (USA), University of South Florida, USA, for her paper Facilitating Youth Participatory Action Research: Reflections, Strategies & Applications.
Al Masaood award for the best paper on Energy: The Future of Energy on Earth category: Ratish Raghavan (India), Waterloo University, Canada for his paper Alternative Energy: Challenges and Possibilities.
The HCT thanks awards sponsors Toshiba, Nikai, Hewlett-Packard, Lehigh University – Iacocca Institute, Sorouh, Abu Dhabi Police, Ali & Sons, Al Fara'a and Al Masaood.