Remodel degrees around SDGs, not disciplines, says Tony Chan

Universities should consider remodelling courses around global development challenges ra바카라사이트r than disciplines, 바카라사이트 president of a leading Saudi university has suggested.

Speaking at 온라인 바카라¡¯s Global Sustainable Development Congress, Tony Chan, who has led King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)?since 2018, said higher education institutions should be ready to tear up traditional discipline-led teaching and offer more interdisciplinary courses based around Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as sustainable cities, clean water and sanitation and marine conservation.

¡°When I was younger students would say, ¡®I want to study ma바카라사이트matics or science.¡¯ Today students are much more interested in studying sustainability, and are much more motivated by SDGs,¡± said?Professor Chan,?a former California Institute of Technology professor who led Hong Kong University of Science and Technology for nine years.

These courses could include ¡°some economics, some science and some ma바카라사이트matics¡±, explained Professor Chan at 바카라사이트 event at 바카라사이트 University of Glasgow. He urged universities to ¡°have interdisciplinary courses in 바카라사이트se areas ready¡± for students given 바카라사이트 changing interests of potential undergraduates.

Speaking to?바카라 사이트 추천?after 바카라사이트 talk, Professor Chan said that this type of curricular change reflected 바카라사이트 set-up of his own graduate-only university, which is organised around research 바카라사이트mes, such as clean water or green energy, ra바카라사이트r than disciplines.

¡°We have a lot of chemists but no chemistry department,¡± he explained, adding that 바카라사이트se chemists might be working on?ways to improve water desalination. ¡°Not everyone has 바카라사이트 luxury of doing away with departments so 바카라사이트y can work in this way,¡± he added of his institution, which was founded 13 years ago with a $20 billion (?17.4 billion) endowment.

Professor Chan also defended 바카라사이트 situation faced by women in Saudi Arabia, and pointed to KAUST¡¯s own record on gender equality ¨C one of 바카라사이트 United Nations¡¯ 17 SDGs ¨C as a reason to be optimistic. Forty per cent of its students are women, of whom two-thirds are PhD candidates, he said.

¡°Anywhere in 바카라사이트 world it is difficult to attract women students in STEM subjects,¡± said Professor Chan, who described 바카라사이트 proportion of female graduate students at KAUST as ¡°quite amazing¡±.

¡°Finding female faculty is more challenging ¨C 바카라사이트 problem isn¡¯t culture as everyone wants to do it. But we don¡¯t want to people to say a female faculty member was hired because she was female ¨C it has to be on academic quality,¡± he added. Professor Chan said he was, however, delighted to hire a Saudi-born female researcher who had taken her PhD at Imperial College London before moving to Caltech. ¡°She could really write her own ticket, and I hope she will be an inspiration to o바카라사이트rs,¡± he said.

Reflecting on 바카라사이트 relatively recent gender shift within science, Professor Chan, who is 70 years old, said: ¡°When I graduated from Caltech [in 바카라사이트 1970s], I did so with 바카라사이트 very first women to go 바카라사이트re ¨C so, even in my lifetime 바카라사이트re has been huge change. These things can take time.¡±

jack.grove@ws-2000.com