ISLAMABAD: US Science Envoy Dr. Bernard Amadei traveled to Islamabad and Lahore this week to promote engineering as way to solve everyday problems faced by communities worldwide, such as access to clean water and energy. Dr. Amadei chose to come to Pakistan on his first trip as envoy, a press release issued by US Embassy says.
He heard perspectives on sustainable development from senior-level government officials, representatives from the academic, engineering, business, and NGO communities, and students.
“Young Pakistani entrepreneurs are brilliant and talented. I have no doubt that they will find ways to solve problems that so many people face worldwide. Entrepreneurs disrupt the status quo – and that’s where the future lies.”
Dr. Amadei met Pakistani entrepreneurs who participated in the US-sponsored Global Innovation through Science and Technology (GIST) Initiative. Three Pakistani entrepreneurs participated in GIST business plan competitions at Global Entrepreneurship Summits in Istanbul in 2011 and Dubai in 2012. GIST supports entrepreneurs through networking, skill-building, mentorship, and funding.
President Obama launched the US Science Envoy Program in Cairo on June 4, 2009. Since the Program’s inception, six of America’s finest scientists have traveled to 19 countries on behalf of the US government to promote international partnerships through scientific collaboration.
Dr. Amadei is the Mortenson Endowed Chair in Global Engineering and Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Among his many distinctions, Dr. Amadei is the founding president of Engineers Without Borders and is an elected member of the US National Academy of Engineering. Dr. Amadei earned his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. His current research and interests focus on sustainability and international development.
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