MU Professor Blogging at COP-16 (Cancun)

MU Professor Mike Urban is serving as an official observer (for the Association of American Geographers)  at the COP-16 meetings on Climate Change in Cancun.  Follow his regular posts on these important meetings here.

Recommended Readings on Thailand

On my recent trip to Thailand, my experience was focused on the Northeast of the country in Isan.  I sense that not many Westerners visit this region.  If so, it's a real shame. 

I'm determined to learn more about the culture I found so appealing.  Thanks to Bonnie Brereton - a respected scholar in the region I met on my trip, I have a few books to add to my readings.


Buddhist Murals of Northeast Thailand: Reflections of the Isan Heartland


Forest Recollections: Wandering Monks in Twentieth-Century Thailand.

Child of the Northeast, by Kampoon Boontawee. translated by Susan Fulop Kepner. Editions Duang Kamol.

My Trip to Thailand

I just returned from a long, but very rewarding trip to Thailand.  I spoke at the International Conference on Local Government, organized by the College of Local Administration at Khon Kaen University.  The conference attracted approximately 500 scholars and public officials from 13 different countries.  I learned much from the conference. 

This was my first time to Isan -- Northeast Thailand. Our hosts at KKU were most gracious.  I'll never forget the food, the hospitality and the beauty of the culture.

October 12 - Careers in the US State Department

U.S. Department of State Careers

Tuesday, October 12, 2010
1:30-3 p.m.
S203 Memorial Union

Presented by Ed Wehrli, Diplomat-in-Residence, University of Oklahoma

·         Learn about a career opportunity unlike any other.
·         Discover how you can have a global impact.
·         Show the world a side of America it has never seen.


Sponsored by the MU International Center

New Global Development Site

If you're concerned about global development issues, check out this content-rich website just launched at the Guardian, in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. 

The data warehouse alone is worth your time.  They also provide powerful info-graphs.

UK Universities in Tough Economic Times

Universities in the US can learn from how our partner (and competitive) institutions are responding to significant cuts in public funding.

The latest report released by Universities UK is definitely worth reading. 

Things You Should Know about (International) Student Names

I stumbled upon this post at EverythingESL -- a blog about teaching English as a second language.

As classes at Missouri hit full stride, it's good for faculty, staff and students to appreciate the cultural distinctions revealed in student names.

This post (and attached comments) offer some helpful background.

Summer Reading

In the dog days of summer -- I'm reading two books I can't put down.

The first, is Cognitive Surplus, by Clay Sharky.  This blurb from the publisher provides a helpful summary:

The author of the breakout hit Here Comes Everybody reveals how new technology is changing us from consumers to collaborators, unleashing a torrent of creative production that will transform our world.

This is a short, practical book, and I recommend it to anyone involved in teaching or learning.

The second, is a novel by Marlene Van Niekerk, called Agaat.  Whenever I travel, I try to read works of fiction by local writers.  I chose this book for my recent trip to South Africa.  This is a beautiful and painful story.  It offers great insight into race and gender relations -- in South Africa and through out the world.

Global Migration Outlook: Implications for Higher Education

There's a great post on Worldwise -- the Chronicle of Higher Education's blog on international issues.

This post, by Francisco Marmolejo, draws on the OECD's annual International Migration Outlook.

It's estimated that 200 million people are currently living outside their home country.  A small - but growing - proportion of these people are students pursuing their education.  These young people with "mobile talent" will be key assets in the global economy.   It's understandable why international competition to attract these students has intensified.

Marmolejo says...

A combination of factors influence the attraction of more or fewer international students by a given country, including the perceived quality and prestige of institutions and academic programs, affordability of tuition in the host country, availability of scholarships and loans for mobility in both host and home countries, language of instruction, effectiveness of outreach and marketing efforts carried on by institutions and governments, perception surrounding the degree of friendliness and openness of the country, among many others. In addition, increasingly students take into consideration how difficult and costly is the visa process, and how flexible the migratory policies are regulating their opportunities to conduct further practical training and eventually to work. According to Nafsa–Association of International Educators, talented students and skilled workers will go to the places that welcome them and offer the best opportunities. Unfortunately the U.S. has been "slow to appreciate and adjust to a paradigm shift in global mobility." The title of the policy briefing authored by Nafsa couldn’t be more eloquent: "A Visa and Immigration Policy for the Brain-Circulation Era: Adjusting to What Happened in the World While We Were Making Other Plans."

The Euro-zone Crisis: Good Graphics

I noticed this recent summary of economic trends and policy responses in the Euro-zone. Whether or not you're focused on the global competition in higher education, I think you'll find these graphics of interest.

How the World Views the EU

My good colleague, Gareth Harding has published this multimedia piece on how the world now views the institutions of the European Union.

It will take some time -- but I recommend that you check it out.

Ireland: the High Cost of Austerity

Our Ireland study abroad program was a great success. My students were dynamic and engaged. I think we all learned much from the trip -- both in and out of the class meetings.

One of the two courses -- Facing the Future: Ireland Responds to Economic Crisis -- focused on the current economic, social and political conditions of a small struggling country. I'll share more about this experience shortly.

If you're interested, this recent article in the New York Times provides a good overview of the dilemmas Irish people face.

Globalization -- and Asia's Return to Economic Supremacy

This week, our study abroad program is visiting at University College Dublin -- comparing the response to global economic crisis in Ireland and the US, and assessing the long-term effects on these two countries.



Today, we had an excellent presentation by Dr. Niamh Hardiman (of UCD's Geary Institute) entitled Liberalism in Crisis. She showed well the magnitude of economic, fiscal and political challenges European countries now face.



Tonight, I read this essay by Michael Hennigan at Finfacts.



It will take time, but I think you'll find it worth reading.

China's Role in World Food Prices

A good colleague, Pat Westhoff at MU's Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute, provided this excellent guest post on how developments in China may affect food prices through out the world. This work appeared in the New York Time's Freakanomics Blog.

Pat is also the author of a newly published book on the economics of food. If you're concerned about food security -- check this out.

More on Irish housing surplus

As a quick follow up to this recent post -

Here's a piece about what it's like to live in one of Ireland's 621 newly-developed, but largely unoccupied housing subdivisions.

One in five housing units is now vacant in Ireland.

US branch campuses abroad: survey results

On GlobalHigherEd, I saw this post that summarizes research on US university branch campus-abroad initiatives. The post is contributed by Madeline Green at the Center for International Initiatives at the American Council on Education.

The introduction to this post provides links to useful resources for those considering branch campus ventures.

For a more complete report of research findings, check here.

New Magazine on the Bologna Process

At the Hedda Blog, I note this announcement about a new magazine designed to explicate the issues and the achievements of higher education reform in Europe.

For casual observers, the Bologna process can be a challenge to decipher technical terms and jargon, and to search for the core issues. (For some background, see here, here and here).

This new publication seems quite accessible. In fact, you can access it here.

India: $1 Billion loan to improve engineering education

I see in the University World News that the World Bank has issued a $1 billion loan to improve the quality of engineering education in India.  This program will directly benefit up to 200 institutions of higher education, to be selected on a competitive basis.

Economic Crisis: Effects on Study Abroad

Last fall, the Forum on Education Abroad conducted a survey on how the global economic crisis has affected study abroad participation in the US.

Here are the published results.

Generally, most reporting institutions saw negative effects on study abroad.  At the University of Missouri we have not had this experience. (For example, see this recent post.)

The Future of Higher Ed in Haiti

This report from Inside Higher Ed...

A new study of higher education in Haiti -- the first to examine the state of the system in the wake of the Jan. 12 earthquake -- documents debilitating problems that existed before the natural disaster and have only been compounded by the lost lives and destroyed infrastructure.
The devastation in Haiti was so widespread that it was immediately clear in the weeks after the earthquake that all levels of education suffered the deaths and injuries of students and instructors, and the collapse of classrooms. But a study issued Tuesday by Haiti's Interuniversity Institute for Research and Development -- a respected think tank known by its acronym INURED -- documents the extent of the damage, and of the problems that existed previously.

Find the full report here.

For an eyewitness account of the January 12 earthquake, and the first response to calls for assistance, please see this event on the MU campus later today.