Navigating Crisis: A Journey from Sudan to Safety

When Yasir Zaidan embarked on his research journey to Sudan, he never anticipated that the peaceful pursuit of knowledge would be disrupted by the chaos of war. As conflict erupted in April 2023, his experience transformed into a harrowing tale of survival and resilience, illustrating the unpredictable nature of global events and their far-reaching impacts.

“Yasir’s journey to the University of Washington began in 2020 amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a PhD student in International Studies with the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies, he embarked on a unique research endeavor focused on port cities and their interactions with global investment projects. With a prestigious fellowship from the Social Science Research Council, Yasir’s path led him back to his homeland of Sudan, where he intended to conduct critical field research on port development dynamics. However, his plans took an unforeseen turn as the eruption of war in Sudan in April 2023 disrupted his academic pursuits and necessitated his evacuation.”

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Dr. Samuel Wasser, OGA Advisory Council member, receives 2022 Lowell Thomas Award

The Office of Global Affairs (OGA) is pleased to share that Dr. Samuel Wasser, a member of the OGA Advisory Council for more than five years, has received the 2022 Lowell Thomas Award. Provided by The Explorers Club, the annual award is given thematically to a group of outstanding explorers to recognize excellence in domains or fields of exploration. The awardees of the 2022 Lowell Thomas Award were selected for their excellence in Conservation Genetics.

According to the 2022 Lowell Thomas Award announcement, “Dr. Samuel Wasser holds the endowed chair in Conservation Biology at the University of Washington, where he is a Professor in the Department of Biology and Co-Executive Director of Center Environmental Forensic Science. He is acknowledged worldwide for developing noninvasive tools for monitoring human impacts on wildlife. Dr. Wasser applies these tools to forensic analyses of transnational wildlife crime. He used elephant dung to assemble a DNA reference map of elephants across Africa, which is now widely used to determine the geographic origins of poached ivory. By comparing genotyped ivory to this reference map, he has been able to identify Africa’s largest elephant poaching hotspots, track the number and connectivity of major ivory traffickers operating in Africa, and uncover strategies that transnational organized crime syndicates use to acquire and move their contraband around the world.”

Population Health: UW & Aga Khan University partnership leads to research, learning, and health collaborations

The University of Washington and the Aga Khan University have partnered substantially over the past years to advance global population health and link their institutions. Through these collaborations, students, faculty, and researchers have benefited from the shared expertise and exchange in a range of areas and disciplines.

Read more about the history and impact of this partnership and the Office of Global Affairs and Global Innovation Fund’s involvement below:

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“There were a lot of synergies between our two institutions not just in terms of our social justice missions, but around the values of what this partnership holds,” Farzana Karim-Haji, director of the Aga Khan University Partnerships Office, said. “The Population Health Initiative at UW draws parallels to AKDN’s Quality of Life Initiative, where both are focused on a holistic view of improving the overall human condition from a variety of aspects in health, education, poverty alleviation, climate change, etc.”

A new tool in the fight against poaching

Smithsonian Magazine profiled the work of passionate UW researcher and conservation advocate Samuel Wasser. He is using wild animal dung to trace and end poaching around the world.

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Clues in poached ivory yield ages and locations of origin

More than 90 percent of ivory in large, seized shipments came from elephants that died less than three years before, according to a new study. A team of scientists at the University of Utah, the University of Washington and partner institutions came to this conclusion by combining a new approach to radiocarbon dating for ivory samples with genetic analysis tools developed by UW biology professor Sam Wasser.

From Uganda to Washington: forestry doctoral student wins top prize for wildlife conservation

When graduate student Carol Bogezi heard that Washington has big carnivores, she was sold. Bogezi, who grew up in Uganda and began her doctoral degree several years ago at the UW’s School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, was excited to track and tag cougars and investigate how the recent return of wolves affects ranchers.

Her graduate school research and resiliency in overcoming obstacles has caught the attention of the Bullitt Foundation, a Seattle-based organization that seeks to promote responsible human activities and sustainable communities in the Pacific Northwest.

Bogezi is the winner of the annual Bullitt Environmental Prize, which recognizes people with exceptional potential to become powerful leaders in the environmental movement. Bogezi will receive $100,000 to continue her work in wildlife conservation.

For MEDEX student, a life spent learning patience

Growing up in Gambia with childhood injuries and persistent medical problems, Ismail Jatta cultivated patience that has served him well as a caregiver. Having recently completed physician assistant training at MEDEX Northwest, he reflects on his unique path.

Professor, researcher, detective – saving endangered animals

UW Professor Samuel . K Wasser “is a Sherlock Holmes of the wildlife trade. With modern biochemical tools and old-fashioned shoe leather, he sleuths out the merchants behind the market for poached animal products.”

Innovative cup designed to save babies

Experts from the University of Washington and PATH have invented a special low-cost cup for feeding special needs babies. Each year in the developing world, millions of babies are born with health challenges that impair feeding and can lead to starvation. The $1 NIFTY cup provides a new solution.

UW-industry partnership manufactures clean, efficient cookstoves in Kenya

For much of the world’s population, gathering fuel to cook food is a dangerous proposition, and smoke from cookstoves poses a serious health threat. A more efficient and clean wood-burning cookstove — developed by the Vashon Island-based non-profit BURN Design Lab in close collaboration with University of Washington mechanical engineers — will reduce the amount of fuel families need to collect or buy by 55 percent. It will also reduce the exposure of these women and children to the harmful particulate pollution produced by traditional cooking flames.

The new wood-burning cookstove will be manufactured in BURN Manufacturing’s factory in Nairobi, Kenya beginning this summer — thanks to a recent $800,000 investment fromUnilever and Acumen — and sold across East Africa.