News and features

Myanmar goes mobile, with UW’s help

A reformist government sped up Myanmar’s transition to democracy three years ago, dramatically increasing聽access to information. In 2011, just four percent of the population had mobile phones. Now the figure is closer to eighty percent, with many people owning smartphones. But navigating the flood of online information can be problematic for new users with no experience assessing the trustworthiness of sites and sources. An initiative launched by 91探花faculty aims to change that.

The initiative, (ISST), is designed to build digital literacy,聽information literacy, and data literacy across Myanmar. Professors Mary Callahan and Sara Curran in the Jackson School of International Studies, Chris Coward, director of the Technology & Social Change Group in the Information School, and Michael Crandall, a principal research scientist in the Information School, lead the project in collaboration with USAID, Microsoft, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Board of Regents approves first 91探花master鈥檚 program through Global Innovation Exchange

The UW聽Board of Regents has approved the (MSTI) degree, a 60-credit interdisciplinary program developed by the Global Innovation Exchange (GIX), in collaboration with the 91探花departments of Computer Science & Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Human Centered Design & Engineering, the Foster School of Business, the Information School and the School of Law.

The MSTI degree will be the first U.S.-based program offered through the , a partnership between the 91探花 and Tsinghua University, with foundational support from Microsoft.

91探花experts hail Paris climate agreement

Professors and students comment on the signing of the Paris climate agreement as countries move toward implementing its contents.

Boosting global health partnerships for Chinese universities

Supported by the 聽a聽landmark symposium hosted by the UW聽last week brought together leaders and faculty from five Chinese universities, across the 91探花campus and the Seattle community.聽鈥淐ollaborating with Chinese colleagues is a tremendously high priority, both personally for faculty and institutionally here at UW,鈥� said Judy Wasserheit, chair of the Department of Global Health and symposium聽co-chair.

Belgian Ambassador to the U.S. speaks on campus

The United States and Belgium have worked together across the globe to promote security, human rights, and bilateral trade. They share a mutual interest in creating safe communities in the United States, Belgium, and elsewhere by cooperating on counterterrorism and countering violent extremism. The two nations also have longstanding economic and commercial ties with more than 13 million jobs on both sides of the Atlantic already supported by US-EU trade.

The 91探花community is invited聽a talk with the Belgian Ambassador to the United States, Johan Verbeke, April 18th in the Smith Room, Allen Library at 3:00pm.

Scientists crack the code of butterflies’ international journey

Each fall, monarch butterflies across Canada and the United States turn their orange, black and white-mottled wings toward the Rio Grande and migrate over 2,000 miles to the relative warmth of central Mexico.

This journey, repeated instinctively by generations of monarchs, continues even as monarch numbers have plummeted due to loss of their sole larval food source 鈥� milkweed. But amid this sad news, a research team believes they have of the internal, genetically encoded compass that the monarchs use to determine the direction 鈥� southwest 鈥� they should fly each fall.

For leading nonprofits, global change starts in Seattle

By investing in global health, Seattle foundations and non-profits are also changing聽the Puget Sound region. They are infusing the region’s innovation ecosystem with a wealth聽of global health care companies and research institutes, and they have helped build capacity and expertise at the 91探花.

UW-led field project watching clouds from Antarctica

A UW聽atmospheric scientist is leading a project to study the clouds above the Southern Ocean. Seeing how the cloud droplets, small bits of dust, sea spray, and other materials on which cloud droplets form, and the ocean and sun interact will help improve global climate models.

Guggenheim Foundation honors three globally-engaged professors

Three UW聽professors聽are among the 178 scholars, artists, and scientists recognized this year by the . Katharyne Mitchell, Helen O鈥橳oole and Rajesh Rao were among the winners chosen from more than 3,100 applicants and will receive grants that allow them to pursue creative projects in the fields of science, academic scholarship and the arts.

Exploring the history of Jewish refugees in Shanghai

From 1933 to 1941, Shanghai became a modern-day 鈥淣oah鈥檚 Ark鈥� accepting over 18,000 Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust in Europe. Most were from Germany and Austria, but the refugees also included students of the famed Mir Yeshiva, the only yeshiva in occupied Europe to survive the Holocaust. In the 鈥淒esignated Area for Stateless Refugees鈥� in Ti Lan Qiao historic area of Shanghai, Jewish refugees lived harmoniously with local Chinese, overcoming numerous difficulties together. By the time the Second World War ended in 1945, most of the Jewish refugees had survived.

The Jewish Refugees in Shanghai Exhibition (1933-1941) brings together for the first time photos, personal stories, and artifacts from Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum. The exhibition will run at Hillel at 91探花from April 5 through April 30, 2016. It is free and open to the public聽Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM 鈥� 4:00 PM. School field trips are available with advanced notice.