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Vol.
31 No. 2
March-April 2009
Frontiers of Chemical Sciences: Research and Education in the Middle East
Building on the tremendous success of the first, second, and third Malta conferences (see projects 2002-061-1-020, 2004-030-1-020, and 2006-035-1-020, respectively), the Executive Committee has recently approved a project to be known as Malta IV. The objectives are as follows:
- to use science as a bridge to peace in the Middle East by bringing together top scientists from 14 Middle East countries (Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates) for a five-day conference
- to give scientists the unique opportunity to develop cross-border collaborations to solve regional problems involving the environment, water, and energy, and to design a unified chemical education curriculum
- to attempt, via this conference and workshops, to generate trust among scientific communities—despite the hostility that some of the governments have toward each other—on ways that chemistry can address the problems of the region
The chemical sciences occupy a central position in the world economy, offering the possibility to cultivate mutual understanding through joint research projects and economic development. A general desire to improve the quality of life and political stability in the Middle East is being fulfilled by identifying unique opportunities for network creation and collaboration among chemical scientists to solve chemical, environmental, and educational problems.
The American Chemical Society, the German Chemical Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry, UNESCO, and IUPAC will cosponsor this fourth conference. It will include 70 around representatives, primarily from 14 Middle Eastern nations as well as from Canada, France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Taiwan, UK, and USA.
During the five-day conference, six Nobel Laureates will deliver plenary lectures and act as catalysts in the following workshops: Environment; Air and Water Quality; Science Education and Green Chemistry; Alternative Energy Sources; Medicinal and Natural Products; and Nanotechnology and Material Science.
A principal goal of this conference will be to continue to capture the attention of national governments by inviting the best qualified chemical scientists from those countries to discuss how chemistry can address the problems of the region and contribute to the stability and prosperity of the Middle East.
For more information, contact Zafra Lerman <[email protected]>.
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