Reframing Global Engagement at UW

Written by Anita Ramasastry, Henry M. Jackson Endowed Professor of Law, Director of the Sustainable International Development Graduate Program, and Faculty Director, International, Comparative and Transnational Programs

In autumn of 2020, I was appointed as chair of the Global Engagement Strategy Task Force and charged with reimagining the role that the Office of Global Affairs (OGA) plays in informing and shaping the future of global engagement at the University of Washington.

Over the last year, I had the pleasure of not only diving deeply into discussion with seven peers from diverse units, but meeting with and learning from over 100 stakeholders from across the university.

This work took place at a time of inflection both for the UW broadly and for OGA. The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly transformed UW’s model for teaching and learning, it also put global travel including study abroad on hold. The pandemic also underscored the importance of UW providing administrative and social support structures for international students and researchers during a major global crisis. The Black Lives Matter movement and a renewed call to action for greater focus on anti-racist approaches to education prompted us to grapple with what it means for us to be globally engaged in a way that confronts issues of historica and contemporary racism and colonialism and is consistent with the UW’s overall approach to diversity, equity and inclusion. These challenges and opportunities shaped our process and our recommendations.

Five key recommendations emerged for the future work of OGA:

Shift OGA’s focus from being a steward of policies and procedures to being a builder of global learning and research communities
Serve as a portal and ambassador for stewarding and advancing institution-wide relationships with key global actors — from international organizations, such as the UN and the World Bank, to key foundations and think tanks
Catalyze global teaching and education beyond study abroad, ensuring a global education for all through the use of technology
Identify and work to eliminate the structural barriers that prevent many BIPOC faculty, staff, and students from leveraging OGA’s services and programs
Continue to provide broad administrative support (travel security, MOUs, etc.) for the myriad global partnerships, but also invest more substantially in fewer, deeper, and bi-directional partnerships

Collectively, we are eager to see OGA build a richer ecosystem for global engagement at the UW. UW has a strong commitment to global citizenship. We now have the chance to expand and reframe our approach.

Download the full report

OGA would like to give a special thank you and acknowledgement of the tremendous service of the task force members: Anita Ramasastry (Chair), School of Law; Gayle Christensen, Office of Global Affairs; Leela Fernandes, Jackson School of International Studies; Debra Glassman, Foster School of Business; Stephanie Harrington, College of the Environment; Joe Lott, College of Education; Rebecca Neumann, College of Engineering; Judd Walson, Schools of Public Health & Medicine

Population Health: UW & Aga Khan University partnership leads to research, learning, and health collaborations

The University of Washington and the Aga Khan University have partnered substantially over the past years to advance global population health and link their institutions. Through these collaborations, students, faculty, and researchers have benefited from the shared expertise and exchange in a range of areas and disciplines.

Read more about the history and impact of this partnership and the Office of Global Affairs and Global Innovation Fund’s involvement below:

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“There were a lot of synergies between our two institutions not just in terms of our social justice missions, but around the values of what this partnership holds,” Farzana Karim-Haji, director of the Aga Khan University Partnerships Office, said. “The Population Health Initiative at UW draws parallels to AKDN’s Quality of Life Initiative, where both are focused on a holistic view of improving the overall human condition from a variety of aspects in health, education, poverty alleviation, climate change, etc.”

A new tool in the fight against poaching

Smithsonian Magazine profiled the work of passionate UW researcher and conservation advocate Samuel Wasser. He is using wild animal dung to trace and end poaching around the world.

Read the full article…

GIX will offer learners a menu of IP options

The Global Innovation Exchange will offer students an education – and a chance to start a company. That’s why IP options offered by GIX will include open, shared, or student ownership.

Improving malaria detection through computer vision and machine learning

Electrical engineering doctoral students Charles Delahunt and Mayoore Jaiswal are applying their skills in computer vision and machine learning to the fight against malaria, a disease that affects over 200 million people each year and is one of the most severe public health problems globally. Working with a team at Intellectual Ventures (IV) Lab and with support from the Global Good Fund, they have developed Autoscope, a low-cost, portable and automated device for diagnosing malaria. For Jaiswal, who grew up in Sri Lanka where mosquito-transmitted diseases were and, in some cases, continue to be a serious threat, the project’s social impact is key.

Clues in poached ivory yield ages and locations of origin

More than 90 percent of ivory in large, seized shipments came from elephants that died less than three years before, according to a new study. A team of scientists at the University of Utah, the University of Washington and partner institutions came to this conclusion by combining a new approach to radiocarbon dating for ivory samples with genetic analysis tools developed by UW biology professor Sam Wasser.

The fate of Salonica’s Jews in the city’s transition from Ottoman Empire to Greece

Devin Naar is the Isaac Alhadeff Professor of Sephardic Studies in the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies — part of the Jackson School of International Studies — and an associate professor in the Department of History. He is the author of “Jewish Salonica: Between the Ottoman Empire and Modern Greece,” published in September by Stanford University Press. His recently-published work will be celebrated tonight with a book launch. Registration and more information here.

Arts partnership captures a refugee experience in Seattle

A new exhibition and video documentary tell the story of a refugee family. These were developed by ART WORKS Projects in collaboration with the UW Center for Global Studies, The Seattle Times, UW Libraries and the King County Library System.

See photos and video from The Seattle Times…

Researchers document winds that have blown across central Asia for 42 million years

UW geologist Alexis Licht led a team that has discovered a surprising resilience to one of the world’s dominant weather systems. The finding could help long-term climate forecasts, since it suggests these winds are likely to persist through radical climate shifts.

From Uganda to Washington: forestry doctoral student wins top prize for wildlife conservation

When graduate student Carol Bogezi heard that Washington has big carnivores, she was sold. Bogezi, who grew up in Uganda and began her doctoral degree several years ago at the UW’s School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, was excited to track and tag cougars and investigate how the recent return of wolves affects ranchers.

Her graduate school research and resiliency in overcoming obstacles has caught the attention of the Bullitt Foundation, a Seattle-based organization that seeks to promote responsible human activities and sustainable communities in the Pacific Northwest.

Bogezi is the winner of the annual Bullitt Environmental Prize, which recognizes people with exceptional potential to become powerful leaders in the environmental movement. Bogezi will receive $100,000 to continue her work in wildlife conservation.