Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, an independent, research-driven graduate-level university focused on advanced energy and sustainable technologies, today announced five of its students gained valuable insights from over 100 renowned ‘world thinkers’ during their participation at the fourth biennial ‘Festival of Thinkers’ conference in the UAE.

The interactions with the global thought leaders allowed the Masdar Institute student representatives to hone their constructive thinking capability for meeting the challenges of the global energy sector with fresh and innovative approaches.

The five UAE national students representingthe Masdar Institute at the conference included Sultan Al Kaabi, AamenaAlshamsi, AmeirahAldahmani, ReemKetait and Rashed Al Tayyari.An initiative of the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), the Festival of Thinkers 2011was held at various higher educational institutions across the UAE.

Dr. Lamya Fawwaz, Executive Director of Public Affairs, Masdar Institute, said: “Masdar Institute is a research-driven institution that is mandated to develop the knowledge and human capital base of Abu Dhabi and the UAE through various programs. The Festival of Thinkers is a forum that gathers thought-leaders and today’s decision-makers from across the world for closer interaction with students, who need to develop themselves and become effective decision-makersof tomorrow.

“For the five Masdar Institute students, the festival served as a good learning ground for advancing their personal skills, sharing knowledge and enhancing their overall developmentas professionals. We are grateful to the organizers HCT, as well as the sponsors including DEWA, Abu Dhabi Police, Telecommunications Regulatory Authority and the Department of Transport,for putting together a forum that encouraged intellectual exchange among our students.More importantly, we thank the country’s leadership for their continuous guidance and support in opening up academic opportunities that contribute to creating quality, skilled and well-rounded individuals.”

The five Masdar Institute students were selected from across the programs of studyon the basis of their academic performance and leadership qualities. They joined over300 high-achieving Master’s students from 83 universities representing 40 countries, interacting with them and discussing innovative solutions to a variety of global challenges and pressing social, economic and environmental issues.The renowned ‘world thinkers’,including seven Nobel Laureates, represented various sectors such as business, academics, government, environment, arts and society.

AamenaAlshamsisaid: “It was a great opportunity for us to interact with thinkers from different backgrounds, nationalities, cultures and professions. This diversity helped to exchange ideas, opinions, expertise and thoughts which created a great symphony during the event.”

Sultan Al Kaabisaid: “The event was a perfect occasion to interact with students from top universities of the world and it was beneficial academically and personally. While we learnt more about these universities and their academic programs, the conference also helped us to spread the word about Masdar Institute and its research-specific academic learning streams in advanced energy and sustainable technologies.”

AmeirahAldahmanifound the workshop titled “Technology” at the CERT Complex in Abu Dhabi truly remarkable. Aldahmani said: “Among the panel discussions and the round-table discussions, the session on ‘Environment: Sustainable World for Our Children’ was insightful and offered me food for thought.”

For Rashed Al Tayyari,the workshop on ‘Research and innovation’was the most relevant. Al Tayyari said: “As a student of the research-driven Masdar Institute, this session offered me ample reasons to realize the roleofinnovation. Some of the points raised by the speakers will truly encourage me to focus on clean energy research.The session on ‘Reframing Education’ was equally enriching.”

The events in Abu Dhabi included workshops offered by world rated presenters at the CERT complex as well as the two main days of activities at the Khalifa City Women’s Campus.The studentsalso joined the Opening Ceremony and Gala Dinner at the Emirates Palace Hotel.

The stature of the Nobel Laureates, world thinkers and session moderators as well as the extent of scholarly discussions and interactionsamong the delegates proved fruitful for the students who benefited immensely from the three-day event. The discussions mainly focused on current global challenges through highly informativeexchange of opinion and lateral thinking.

Established in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Masdar Institute integrates theory and practice to incubate a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, working to develop the critical thinkers and leaders of tomorrow. With its world-class faculty and top-tier students, the Institute is committed to finding solutions to the challenges of clean energy and climate change.

 

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