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A cultural exchange with fellow UW students in China

Kim Boudreau served as a Husky Presidential Ambassador this summer, traveling to China to study abroad and mentor incoming international freshmen. For this senior from Spokane, the trip was a chance to leave North America for the first time and share her Husky Pride with incoming freshmen. She came back with new friends and fresh perspectives.

Kim and friends in Beijing
Exploring Beijing

I loved exploring China with the freshmen students. Meeting them in their home country opened my world and theirs. I was matched with Qingyuan and Leo in Beijing, and with Zhicheng and Danni in Shanghai. One of my favorite memories is visiting the crowded, windy Hutongs of Beijing. The Hutongs are a series of old, narrow alleyways, not an ideal place for a big group. Our group of eight UW students was having so much fun that we decided to stick together anyway. Miraculously, we managed not to lose anyone.

I gained as much from the experience as the freshmen students did. I had traveled outside the U.S. only once before, on a trip to Montreal to visit family. This experience was on a whole new level. The Chinese students asked a ton of questions about life at the UW and in the United States. What are the professors like? Which classes should I take? Where’s the best place to eat? If I didn’t know the answer, I asked a fellow Husky Presidential Ambassador. This showed the freshmen students that peers are very useful resources. For my part, I learned that Chinese students are a lot like me. They have the same questions and worries that I had when I first started college. When I started at the UW I was very nervous, and I was only moving from Spokane. I can’t imagine moving halfway across the world. This experience totally changed my perspective on international students.

Back on campus
Back on campus

My study abroad experience was so much richer because I had the opportunity to participate in this cultural exchange. Being with someone who spoke the language and knew the culture made exploring Beijing and Shanghai much easier, but more importantly, I had new friends with me who could answer questions, and tell me about these new places from their perspective.

I didn’t want our time in China to end. At the same time, I was so excited to get back to Seattle because that meant I was one step closer to welcoming the Chinese students to the University of Washington. This quarter, we have class together every Friday. I’m excited for us to explore our University together.

Innovators preview their UW Innovation Summit presentations

In addition to keynote speeches from Ralph Haupter, CEO of Microsoft’s Greater China Region, and Jian Wang, co-founder and president of BGI International, the inaugural University of Washington Innovation Summit will also feature four UW innovators, who previewed their presentations this week:

 

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“Data empathy” is a concept Gina Neff is studying, and refers to how organizations can better meet the expectations people have for how their personal data will be used. Neff, an associate professor of communication, says the health-care system has examples that the technology industry can learn from, such as how providers now use patient data to not only build a relationship with patients, but also spur better health outcomes.

 

PATEL2-e1432233690432-375x281Much of that data may be collected by sensors in development by Shwetak Patel. His research involves using sensors to improve health and sustainability, including the sensors on mobile phones — namely microphones and cameras. Patel, the Washington Research Foundation Entrepreneurship Endowed Professor in Computer Science & Engineering and Electrical Engineering, has been developing tools that utilize these everyday sensors to diagnose everything from pulmonary conditions to infant jaundice. He’s also researching how energy and water usage can be better managed through residential sensing technology.

 

The innovators featured at the Summit aren’t exclusively faculty members. In fact, entrepreneurship and innovation are hallmarks of the UW student experience, as evidenced by a second pair of presenters:

 

BENWATERS-e1432234225501Ben Waters, a Ph.D. candidate in electrical engineering, has focused his research around wirelessly powering the technologies that are playing an increasing role in shaping — and even saving — our lives. One of his innovations provides a way to wirelessly power left ventricular assist devices, which keep patients alive while awaiting heart transplants. Currently, these must be powered through a wire that pierces the skin, heightening the risk of infection. He’s also developing ways to power mobile robotics, from drones to robotic vacuum cleaners.

 

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And a personal tragedy served as the inspiration for Adina Mangubat, CEO of Spiral Genetics and a 2009 UW graduate with a degree in psychology. The death of her grandfather from lung cancer has driven her to innovate in the area of personalized medicine, specifically by creating a company that develops software for large-scale DNA sequencing. Such sequencing enables the genetic factors for certain conditions to be identified more quickly and for treatments to be personalized for maximum effectiveness.

 

More information about the Summit, including how to purchase tickets, is available at uw.edu/shanghai.

 

UW creating partnerships to spur regional, global innovation

Cover: University of Washington: Your Partner In InnovationThe Puget Sound region is at the crossroads of innovation and investment, and the University of Washington is creating partnerships to grow local and global innovation ecosystems.

Seattle and surrounding communities are in close proximity to major international markets on the Pacific Rim and home to a highly educated workforce, as well as the UW – ranked by Reuters as the most innovative public university in the world.

As the collaborative innovation hub for expanding the 华盛顿大学 您创新领域的伙伴societal impact of the University of Washington community, CoMotion delivers the tools and connections UW students and researchers need to team up with private industry and non-profit organizations to accelerate the impact of their innovations. Opportunities for partnerships and investment are outlined in the linked publication.

University of Washington: Your Partner in Innovation (PDF)

华盛顿大学 您创新领域的伙伴 (PDF)

Opportunities to partner with the University and the Puget Sound region will also be highlighted during the UW Innovation Summit in Shanghai, including in breakout sessions following the event.

 

GIX brings global investment and opportunity to Greater Seattle

Global Innovation Exchange building renderingThe Global Innovation Exchange, along with the UW’s many other international partnerships, will have economic benefits for the Greater Seattle area, as well as benefits for Washington students.

These will be at the forefront of the UW’s upcoming events in China, writes Vice Provost for Global Affairs Jeff Riedinger.

GIX is a game changer for the Greater Seattle region, solidifying our reputation as a world-class innovation hub. …

While most university partnerships are outward-facing, GIX brings global here. It will attract some of the world’s finest thinkers, experts and learners to our region, beginning with Tsinghua University students and faculty. Locating GIX in Greater Seattle will give our students the global experiences they need to succeed in our modern economy without ever setting foot outside the U.S.

Read more in this piece for the Trade Development Alliance of Greater Seattle.

UW Law professor’s land reform agency receives humanitarian award

Roy Prosterman, professor emeritus of the University of Washington School of Law, founded Landesa, an international land reform agency a half-century ago. Today, Landesa was honored with a prestigious Hilton Humanitarian Prize. The prize comes with a $2 million cash award.

Prosterman is delighted that the award will help continue Landesa’s important work. “It will be extremely helpful and will lead, I’m sure, to a great deal of coverage of land and the land issue,” Prosterman said. “The award itself will be unrestricted and so it will allow us to work in places where it might otherwise take an extended period of time to get funding earmarked to do it.”

 

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