These remarks from Ms. Cynthia A. Griffin, Commercial Counselor,
Embassy of the United States of America in Thailand, set the tone for a
visit to the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) by high-ranking
American government officials on 15 June 2010. Ms. Griffin was joined
by Ms. Jennie Ness, Regional Intellectual Property Officer, US Patent
and Trademark Office, Embassy of the United States of America in
Thailand.
The two visited the campus to explore possibilities for collaboration
with AIT. The visit was a follow-up to a meeting in late March with AIT
President Said Irandoust and Mr. Vikrom Kromadit, CEO of Thailand’s
Amata Corporation, in which they discussed ideas for Thailand moving
towards a knowledge-based economy through public-private partnerships
in higher education.
President Irandoust welcomed the delegation and noted how the embassy’s
initiatives dovetail with the aspirations of the Asian Institute of
Technology. Reminding the officials of America’s instrumental role in
the founding of AIT, and of its significant impact on the historical
development of the Institute, the president enjoined the United States
to join AIT again in full partnership. “We expect to have 18 to 20,000
students within 10 years,” President Irandoust said.
AIT currently has just over 2,000 students. The increase in enrolment
will be made possible through the implementation of new a funding model
involving both public and private partners in the expansion of AIT
campuses to certain countries around Asia, the AIT president told the
visitors.
President Irandoust also informed the officials of the Government of
Thailand’s decision to approve the draft of the New Charter of the
Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), which once ratified by
nation-states and international entities will grant the Institute the
legal status of a full-fledged international organization.
Ms. Griffin explained that the United States is now working in close
partnership with the Government of Thailand to assist the country to
realize its goal of achieving a “creative economy.” Active engagement
with the country’s top universities to push forward ideas for
innovation and private sector application of research and development
forms a key part of this initiative, she added.
The Commercial Councelor also highlighted the embassy’s support for the
planned “Chiangmai Creative City Conference” on 18 June. Among other
things, the event in Chiangmai aims to improve collaboration among the
region's public, private and academic sectors in developing northern
Thailand's competitiveness as a regional and global IT hub. AIT’s
President Irandoust was invited to participate at the conference.
During the discussion, AIT officials outlined details of various
leading academic programs such as ICT and nanotechnology, and
initiatives involving partnerships with American firms, such as tie-ups
with Western Digital and Seagate. Prof. Sudip K. Rakshit, Vice
President for Research, requested consideration for AIT’s inclusion in
work done by USAID’s Climate Change initiative.
Ms. Ness explained her office’s interest in facilitating the regional
development of technology transfer laws. She mentioned the example of
America’s Bayh-Dole Act (1980), which gives US universities, small
businesses and non-profits intellectual property control of their
inventions and other intellectual property resulting from public sector
funding, as something governments may consider. She indicated that
Philippines had enacted such legislation, and Malaysia and Indonesia
are now looking closely at this type of law to spur innovation.
Ms. Ness also explained ongoing efforts to translate research and
development software tools developed by Public Intellectual Property
Resources for Agriculture (PIPRA) - which is an American non-profit
initiative that assists developing countries to access new technologies
- into multiple ASEAN region languages, including Thai.
Representing the Asian Institute of Technology at the meeting were:
Prof. Said Irandoust, President; Prof. Sudip K. Rakshit, Vice President
for Research; Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai, Vice President for Resource
Development; Prof. Joydeep Dutta, Vice President for Academic Affairs;
Dr. Nitin Afzulpurkar, Dean-SET; Dr. Weerakorn Ongsakul, Dean-SERD; Dr.
Jonathan Shaw, Director, AIT Extension; Dr. Amrit Bart, AITVN Director;
Prof. Gabor L. Hornyak, Visiting Faculty; Dr. Roland Amoussou,
Asia-Africa Foundation; Mr. Karma Rana, Institute Secretary; Dr. Pritam
K. Shrestha, Head-ERCO; Mr. Shawn P. Kelly, Senior Media Specialist,
MCU; and Ms. Tiamkare Thitithamtada, Program Officer, ERCO.
